Video
A 'Rush' for Ron Howard
As much escapist fun as "Rush" is as an adrenaline-juiced car-race movie, it's most interesting as a rare depiction of male vanity, how physical attractiveness informs self-worth and potency, and the role beauty — so often the sole purview of women on screen — plays in men's relationships and personal insecurities.
Director Ron Howard, cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle and editor Daniel P. Hanley deserve credit for creating a crisp, well-told account that succeeds as a workaday biopic, glamorous period piece and portrayal of sports culture that seems quaintly scruffy seen from an era taken over by steroids, TV-ready narratives and endorsement deals.
The DVD (Universal, $30) includes "Ron Howard: A Director's Approach." The Blu-ray ($35) adds nine making-of featurettes, including a look at the screenplay with Peter Morgan, casting Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Bruhl in the lead roles, filming Formula 1 racing action, and 1970s fashion.
Washington Post
Colin Covert says: "Rush" is one of the best films of Ron Howard's career, certainly the most surprising. Who knew that this competent craftsman had such a furiously exciting, sex-drenched story in him?
Also out Tuesday
Movies: "Bad Grandpa," "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2," "Concussion," "Fifth Estate," "House of Bodies," "Last Vegas," "Metallica: Through the Never," "1," "Seasons of Gray."
TV: "Bonnie & Clyde," "Downton Abbey" (Season 4, U.K. edition), "Treme" (Season 4), "Vera" (Set 3).