The Boys in the Boat

Based on true events, The Boys in the Boat follows a crew of working-class rowers, including Callum Turner’s Joe Rantz and Joel Edgerton’s coach Al Ulbrickson, as they prepare to compete in the 1936 Olympics. Filmmaker George Clooney, armed with Mark L. Smith’s screenplay, delivers a by-the-numbers yet mostly engrossing drama that benefits from its atmospheric visuals and raft of above-average performances, as the picture, in terms of the latter, is generally elevated by the perpetually affable and stirring efforts of its stars and periphery players – with Turner and Edgerton offering up engaging work that goes a long way towards consistently holding the viewer’s interest and attention. And while the movie admittedly does spin its wheels from time to time, particularly in sections detailing the team’s practice sessions, The Boys in the Boat builds towards an unexpectedly riveting and completely satisfying climactic stretch that ensures the film ends on just about as positive a note as one could envision – with the final result a better-than-most inspirational sports story that stands as one of Clooney’s better directorial endeavors.

***1/2 out of ****