Part of Weekend Classics: Robert Redford
Astonishing Alpine location photography and a young Robert Redford in one of his earliest starring roles are just two of the visual splendors of DOWNHILL RACER, the visceral debut feature of Michael Ritchie (see also: THE CANDIDATE (35mm)). In a beautifully understated performance, Redford is David Chappellet, a ruthlessly ambitious skier competing for Olympic gold with an underdog American team in Europe, and Gene Hackman provides tough support as the coach who tries to temper the upstart’s narcissistic drive for glory. With a subtle screenplay by acclaimed novelist James Salter, DOWNHILL RACER is a vivid character portrait buoyed by breathtakingly fast and furious imagery that brings the viewer directly into the mind of the competitor.
“Some of the best moments in DOWNHILL RACER are moments during which nothing special seems to be happening. They’re moments devoted to capturing the angle of a glance, the curve of a smile, an embarrassed silence. Together they form a portrait of a man that is so complete, and so tragic, that DOWNHILL RACER becomes the best movie ever made about sports — without really being about sports at all.” —Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times (Dec 22, 1969) “Robert Redford positively gains through being as yet a little unformed as an actor. In the abstract, David's life is a search for an enviable image, and, as an ultimate irony, he ends up looking at himself.” —Roger Greenspun, New York Times (Nov 7, 1969) “Redford ultimately holds DOWNHILL RACER together with the performance of his career. The actor has served as the pinnacle of hunky liberal decency for so long now that it’s authentically surprising to revisit this film and watch as he so matter-of-factly fashions a hero of prickly, poignant self-absorption. Redford briefly revises his legend a bit, elegantly casting doubt on America’s insidious lone-hero mythology.” —Chuck Bowen, Slant Magazine
