Rush movie gets F1 approval

The premiere of the highly-anticipated F1 biopic Rush will take place next month in Melbourne ahead of the national Australian release on October 3, and is shaping up to be one of the best motor sport movies since Days of Thunder.

Directed by two-time academy award winner and Happy Days alumni Ron Howard, Rush focuses on the race-track rivalry between James Hunt (played by Aussie actor Chris Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda (Daniel Brühl), but also their private lives and internal struggles.

"The closer you are to death, the more alive you feel," intones Hunt's character in the movie.

Nicknamed 'Hunt the Shunt' for his aggressive driving style, the British driver gained a reputation on and off the track for his risky behaviour. The British playboy racer was a notorious womaniser, reportedly having bedded almost 5000 women in less than a month.

The film focuses on the 1976 Formula 1 season, during the golden age of F1, in which Hunt and Lauda fought nail and tooth to come out on top. In the end Hunt won the championship by just one point.

Billed as an action-drama feature, the producers of Rush have used several real and replica F1 cars from the 1970s, so the races won't just be CGI affairs, adding a gritty, visceral touch to the action sequences.

The film was recently shown to several groups in the F1 including Bernie Ecclestone, Felipe Massa. Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, and was apparently very well received. The director of the film, Ron Howard, described the intimate screening as the "toughest test" he's faced since the film was finished a few months ago.

Interestingly, Niki Lauda himself gave the film a thumbs up, leading the applause after the screening, suggesting that it's either an accurate account of the 1976 F1 season or it paints Lauda in a good light.

Australian auction house and insurance broker Shannons is giving away hundreds of double passes to see the new film when it begins showing from early October, and will fly one lucky winner and a companion to Melbourne for the Australian premiere of the film between September 16 and 23.

The major prize includes two tickets to the Australian premiere of Rush in Melbourne, return airfares, overnight accommodation and a Rush movie poster.

Entry to the competition requires Shannons Club membership. Hit up the Shannons Club for more information.