Summary
- The Boys in the Boat is an inspirational underdog story set during the Great Depression with the crew team motivated by their survival and the opportunity for an education.
- The movie, directed by George Clooney, stays true to the book's beautiful writing and showcases the team's incredible talent amidst their challenging circumstances.
- Rowing is compared to filmmaking, with Clooney highlighting the importance of teamwork and collaboration on set, even in the face of COVID-19 setbacks.
The Boys in the Boat is based on the true story of the 1936 University of Washington crew team that represented the United States in the 1936 Summer Olympics. Shoved into the spotlight, this group of underdogs takes on elite rivals as they are doing everything they can to survive the Great Depression. The movie focuses on the coaches, including Al Ulbrickson, the student-athletes, notably Joe Rantz, and boat builder George Pocock.
The Boys in the Boat is based on Daniel James Brown's non-fiction book of the same name. George Clooney directed and produced the movie, with the screenplay penned by Mark L. Smith. The Boys in the Boat stars Joel Edgerton, Callum Turner, Jack Mulhern, Sam Strike, Alec Newman, and Peter Guinness.
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Screen Rant interviewed The Boys in the Boat director George Clooney and star Joel Edgerton. Edgerton broke down what he wanted to explore with coach Al Ulbrickson. Clooney explained why working with actors who have directed is easier and the amazing reality of this story.
George Clooney & Joel Edgerton Talk The Boys in the Boat
Screen Rant: This film is almost perfect. I love it. Here's the thing. I love inspirational journeys like this. This is the ultimate underdog story, but I love this time frame as well. It just fascinates me. The boys were up against the University of Washington seniors. They went up against these rich fraternity kids, and then the Nazis. What a story.
George Clooney: Yeah. All the people you can't stand. Rich kids and the Nazis.
Most stories in this genre would have the team band together and win because of their athletic prowess, but it was more than that. These guys, had their backs against the wall simply because if they didn't do it, they couldn't afford college. George, can you talk about that motivating factor, and the team pushing beyond their limits?
George Clooney: Well, that's the book, and he's such a beautiful writer, and that's what made this story so special. It's the Depression, and these guys have no money. And Washington State was a very poor area. Everybody was poor, but they were really poverty properly poor, lumberjacks mostly. So they did it to eat, and they did it to get in school and try to get an education and get ahead. And they ended up being the Beatles.
Which is a really unusual thing that they ended up, honestly, being this insanely talented group of young men. It's such a fun story. If it weren't true, you'd say, "This is just horrible." You would say, "This is ridiculous. Really? The coach gave them the money and they missed the starting gun and all that stuff." All of it's true.
I'm going to tell you right now, such a fantastic performance. I love these hardass coaches who seem miserable doing it, but absolutely do it because of ion and that just drive to succeed. What did you want to bring to Coach Ulbrickson that wasn't on the page?
Joel Edgerton: Just that feeling of an imminent heart attack. We were really curious together in conversations about avoiding too much love and warmth in the beginning. I think Ulbrickson heading into the year with a new batch of kids is looking at the length of arms and the size of shoulders and the strength of hands, and looking at them as more components of the boat, rather than individuals.
And just building throughout the story to the inevitable sense of empathy you get when you spend time with anyone, and just that little sort of glimmer of love. So this sort of relationship of a coach as much as like a father figure.
Rowing seems very similar to filmmaking. Everyone doing different jobs, all in unison. Can you give me an example of a day on set when the production boat maybe wasn't cutting water, but you guys all pushed together to to that finish line?
George Clooney: Well, it happens every day, right? When you're directing a film, you've got seven or eight different unions, and people filling those unions that all have their own opinions of what they want. And part of your job is to try to make sure that all of them are heard and then still all trying to make the same film. But that's the fun of it. It's like being in the military a little bit. Joel's directed, and he knows what it's like.
And by the way, it's really helpful to work with actors who've directed because instead of having to explain anything, I'll just be like, "And then I need you at the door at the end of the speech." He's like, "Got it." It's so much easier than having to say, "I think the reason you walked to the door is because your parents were alcoholics, and that's why." You're going to say, "Oh, would I stumble-"
Joel Edgerton: How did you know my parents were alcoholics?
George Clooney: Let's leave your parents out of this.
Joel Edgerton: But I'll say this, too: COVID ripped through the entire cast at the beginning month of the shoot.
George Clooney: Oh, man.
Joel Edgerton: We never missed a day. And the ability for this production, thanks to George of just going, "We're going to keep shooting," finding the right things to move around that I was certain we were going to just collapse.
George Clooney: Yeah.
Joel Edgerton: But we never did.
George Clooney: I was directing from an iPad for a week because I was quarantined and sick with COVID.
Joel Edgerton: He was actually La Coma.
George Clooney: Yeah,I was smoking a cigar.
Joel Edgerton: It was all a lie.
Well, look. The film is absolutely phenomenal. You guys made me want to jump in one of these boats. If you were the coach, I would've definitely jumped in and tried to crew.
George Clooney: Yeah, yeah.
Joel Edgerton: The pool's downstairs. I have a little...
A little training session.
George Clooney: Come on, man. Let's do it.
About The Boys in the Boat
The Boys in the Boat is a sports drama based on the #1 New York Times bestselling non-fiction book written by Daniel James Brown. The film, directed by George Clooney, is about the 1936 University of Washington rowing team that competed for gold at the Summer Olympics in Berlin. This inspirational true story follows a group of underdogs at the height of the Great Depression as they are thrust into the spotlight and take on elite rivals from around the world.
Check back soon for our other The Boys in the Boat interviews:
- Callum Turner & Hadley Robinson
- Daniel J. Brown
- Mark L. Smith
The Boys in the Boat hits theaters on December 25.
Source: Screen Rant Plus
