Chariots of Fire (1981) movie review - Sneak Previews with Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel

[@robbiereilly]

One of my favorite films of all time. Completely absorbing. But not for everyone. Raiders is also one of my favorite films. So it's a tough call. Raiders, obviously more appealing to a wider audience, but no less enthralling. I usually agree with Siskel more than Ebert, but this time, I'm definitely in league with Roger. Great, great film. he states he was 'very deeply affected'. Me too.

[@leew1598]

yes as great as Raiders is a simple minded person could still enjoy it which you probably couldn't say about Chariots of Fire.

[@hamburgareable]

My favorite too.

[@jimmybonez8928]

@@leew1598 Das Boot in my opinion was my favorite movie this year(came out in West Germany,look it up, in December this year). Although this is an outstanding movie, Raiders of course as well, ‘81 was a low key OUTSTANDING year for movies!!!

[@NaturaBreeze]

@@leew1598 yes, simple minded = American audience

[@gage6209]

This a movie I wish was at least an hour longer. It’s so damn engaging.

[@ccchhhrrriiisss100]

As a kid, I couldn't sit through this movie without falling asleep. The same was true with films like Gone with the Wind. However, now that I'm an adult, I absolutely love both of those films. There is more "story" in these films than what you find in their run-times. They are character studies of individuals from a very particular point in history. The acting is superb.

[@lw3646]

@Dean F. children sometimes have poor taste, they might prefer batman and robin over films like this but there's other times where you wish you could be a kid again, the way they experience and believe a film like Raiders of the Lost Ark is probably going to be better in a way that an adult. They don't think about film analysis, plot holes or how an effect was done. They just enjoy the magic. Children will suffer though if you make them watch a long film on serious adult themes. In this the themes are rivalry and competition and self belief in relation to rebellion against some of the upper-class establishment values of 1920s Britain so probably not great for children.

[@caseyclausen2627]

Chariots of Fire was a favorite of mine when I was a kid. Just watched it today for the first time in twenty, thirty years? It was spectacular. Fun, too, that I really didn't remember the plot, so kind of got to see it fresh. Interestingly, my boys, who are both under 8, will sit through and watch all of Interstellar and For All Mankind. Maybe it'd be a good time to watch this with them.

[@theresamahfouz790]

@@lw3646 I was the weirdo kid who saw Chariots of Fire at age 10 and was hooked and tried to show it to my friends, who had little interest. I had the movie memorized, and I ended up running track in high school and college, inspired by Eric Liddell.

[@LukenatorFTW]

We must’ve watched different cuts of the film as I found the characters incredibly one note at the most, and the story completely lacking of any trace of tension or stakes outside of any scene with the Vangelis soundtrack. Acting was ok, but what a dull script , wow.

[@DandyLion662a]

I'm with Roger on this one. I'd put it in my top 10 of all-time faves.

[@DixiePokerAce]

Probably, one of the greatest sports movies of all time.

[@DixiePokerAce]

This movie was definitely from another time. I loved this movie when I saw it in 1981. I still like it but the fact that it is over 40 years old really makes me feel old.

[@melindakinnaird]

One of my favorite films ever.

[@oldfashionedguy1368]

Chariots Of Fire is probably without a doubt one of the best British films ever made. 👍👍

[@lw3646]

Yes along with a few others for me like The Third Man, Great Expectations, Lawrence of Arabia, Zulu, A Room with a view, Howard's End, Gandhi, the Railway Children.

[@That_Random_Bloke]

@@lw3646 Excellent list

[@kamuelalee]

Unforgettable film with an awesome Vangelis score. Top notch!!

[@reneedennis2011]

R.I.P. Ben Cross.

[@kamuelalee]

Sorry to hear that Mr. Cross died. Loved him in this flick.

[@hamburgareable]

Yep.

[@jameswilliams-zr8co]

.RIP vangelis, chariots of fire is a classic theme

[@louisaparker]

A very stylish and a very British movie.

[@deenoberry3360]

Love this movie and as a person with beliefs it's so relatable. Both little and Abraham's were such interesting people.

[@NaturaBreeze]

Intriguing how two films, both very similar, both came out in 1981 (Chariots, & Gallipoli), with the qualities that Ebert alludes to 7:35 ... uplifts the spirit, amazing score, exhilaration......and tears...

[@samuelstephens6163]

I like this film a lot but never loved it, not quite. It's emotionally detached, but it's quietness still appeals to me.

[@TheTerryE]

Emotionally detached? You must have seen a different film or you just like people slobbering all over each other.

[@lw3646]

Just watched it, thought it was really well made. It was edge of your seat stuff at the end without ever over doing it.

[@patrickc3419]

Hands down my favorite sports film, and one of my all time favorite films.

[@GoldwaterB]

Miss. These. Guys.

[@SOS-ct9mv]

My parents " we're seeing chariots of fire you can sit in the car or see it with us" siblings-2 sat in the car 2 saw it. The two the saw it were bored out of their minds. lmao.

[@jamesgoss1860]

It's a shame that this film is often dismissed as the "movie that beat Raiders at the Oscars" because it's truly a great and ground-breaking film.

[@TimeAxisMedia]

Never understood the love for this movie. I guess as an adult decades later, I should try it again. Bored to death in 1981 as a 14 or 15 year old.

[@classiclife7204]

British films, which had once been so exciting back in the 1960s, were so dull during this period. "Gandhi" (1982) was another snoozer. Flavorless but good for you, like eating a cabbage. Later in the decade, "indie"-style British films, pointing toward a direction away from big "prestige" films, revived the art.

[@MarkKnockemus]

An excellent film.

[@markallen2984]

Still one of my favorite movies

[@daybeau7819]

My two problems with CoF: the industrial sounding music that accompanies the workout session of the US team and the trackside, post-meet motivational speech given by Ian Charleson that does not quite ring true to the evangelistically minded Eric Liddell. I understand the reasons for these choices, but...yeah. Raiders was certainly more entertaining being filled with fun, adventure, and references to the old serial films from the black-and-white era. But like its cousin, Star Wars, Raiders was more of a cartoon created by fans of entertaining films they grew up with and wanted to deliver a similar experience to their generation of movie goers. People moved by Chariots of Fire can appreciate Raiders of th Lost Ark. But the heroism displayed in Chariots is of a different quality altogether, made more impactful being based on an actual human drama and the fact that "All of Scotland mourned."

[@jimmybonez8928]

I think this is a GREAT film!!! But this isn’t the BEST film of 1981. Das Boot is, BY FAR!!!!!!! It was released in West Germany( LOOK IT UP KIDS) in December of 1981, and came out in the states in February of 1982.

[@jimmybonez8928]

@Dean F. I know, but Das Boot was just a slightly better movie in my opinion.

[@caseyclausen2627]

I really like Das Boot. Have seen it many times. I'm no authority, but think both Das Boot and Chariots of Fire are similarly extremely well made. Chariots touches me a bit more, maybe like what Roger described. If Das Boot does that for you, I'm glad that exists to give you and others that happiness. My favorite might be Gattaca. I realize just now there are some similar themes between it and Chariots of Fire (hadn't really thought of it before).

[@jimmybonez8928]

@@caseyclausen2627 fair enough.

[@hwyfan]

@@jimmybonez8928Das Boot was a fine film in its own right. It is of a completely different genre however and I think it’s impossible to say one is “better” than the other. Chariots of Fire presents to us something which many of us can relate to in human nature. As an old runner, I definitely *feel* the film and its themes.

[@jimmybonez8928]

@@hwyfan you're certainly entitled to your opinion. But I honestly think that genre, REALLY DOESN'T MATTER!!!! A great film is a great film. The fact that Das Boot isn't a sophisticated drama doesn't qualify it for you as the BEST picture of the year is completely fine. To each their own. BTW, not making recriminations against you, just stating my opinion.

[@sheronasims6783]

Eric Liddell was not English

[@danielgrimes8312]

brad Davis was on this Film?...

[@MontgomeryMall]

Yes. Brad Davis portrayed American sprinter Jackson Scholz.

[@danielgrimes8312]

@@MontgomeryMall shit...his life became lesser with each movie he make...poor guy , hollywood's landlords absolutely kill his career to a point this was his last Big project , after that , cause querelle is kinda non hollywood like , very Artistic non Profit European Movie ...and it was querelle that put the rope around his neck....

[@kamuelalee]

Yes, Brad Davis was very good in this movie.

[@hamburgareable]

Yep.

[@jaykay6387]

I agree with Roger. This film is in the pantheon, as close to a perfect film as can be achieved. Technically brilliant, spellbinding, "immersive", emotionally moving and intellectually challenging. My favorite film of all time.

[@ryancannon4110]

1. Rocky (1976) 2. Chariots of Fire (1981) 3. The Karate Kid (1984) 4. Vision Quest (1985) 5. Bloodsport (1988)

[@kamuelalee]

Tha Natural Field of Dreams Bull Durham Major League Rocky III

[@vinnieviddivicci5459]

@@kamuelalee - I ❤ The Natural!

[@DixiePokerAce]

Rocky Hoosiers Victory Hard Times Friday Night Lights

[@rodolfoleyva5157]

Best Picture for 1981 😁💯👌

[@rodolfoleyva5157]

I am with Roger

[@OhSankYouDoktor]

Thank you, Gene! This is one of those films I really wanted to like and gave a few chances. But I think Gene summed it up pefectly. Best musical score of all time! Best opening scene. But boring movie.

[@theresamahfouz790]

I'm with Roger Ebert on this one. The movie changed my life, literally. And how many films can say they actually led people to become Christians? I lost count of the number of people who were so moved by Eric Liddell's character in the film that they immersed themselves in Christianity, read about his real life story, and converted.

[@OhSankYouDoktor]

@@theresamahfouz790 Oy vey!

[@theresamahfouz790]

@@OhSankYouDoktor Did something I say bother you? :) I respect you for giving your honest opinion. I was only sharing my opinion, experience, and reaction to seeing the film. It changed my life for the better. There are few films that I can say had such an impact on my childhood, and even my adulthood. What's boring to one person can be life changing for someone else. It makes life all the more interesting how unique and different everyone's subjective experiences are!

[@GoldwaterB]

I agree with you and with Gene. The movie actually seemed a bit flat to me, overall. But I have to reconsider it, after hearing Roger note the replacement of determination with technology at that time. Now I better understand all the fuss about Mussabini, with the stopwatch, the massages, etc. - and who, I understand, gave his athletes drugs in real life to improve performance.

[@polreamonn]

Take Vangelis out of this film and it has nothing out of the ordinary.

[@CanadianMonarchist]

The actor who plays Edward VIII looks the most like him of any actor who has played him.

[@tentcater4710]

Good certainly not great film but 1980/81 was not a year of good or great films so this one really stuck out to many critics and the Oscar people

[@mrnocal]

Raiders of the Lost Ark and On Golden Pond...better. Just my opinion for that year.

[@TheHoopyscoopy]

On Golden Pond was cornball crap.

[@DixiePokerAce]

On Golden Pond? I don't see On Golden Pond comparing to this. It was okay but I consider Chariots of Fire on a whole other level.

[@spencerhensley5495]

I like all three. You couldn’t go wrong with awarding any of them. I personally felt I connected with On Golden Pond best but COF is still great. Reds by Warren Beatty was also excellent.

[@TheTerryE]

It's a shame that the scene they start with in this review is a total lie. The first person to run and win that race was actually "Lord Lindsay."

[@esmeephillips5888]

And 'Lindsay' was a fictional character based on Lord Burghley, who did not want his name used.

[@briannewman532]

I like quiet, deliberate films... but this movie is as boring as can be. I never understood the praise heaped on it. It's SO incredibly bland. The running scenes don't look like the actors are even trying, I doubt they even broke a sweat. Blah.

[@theresamahfouz790]

I don't think we saw the same movie.

[@FirstorDirt]

It was a pretentious piece of shit. It went from one unbelievable speech to another that never displayed the real youth of the two main characters. It was uninteresting and a whole wardrobe of the Kings new cloths

[@MooMoo-sj2zg]

I can only assume people love this film for silly patriotic reasons. Great soundtrack but incredibly posh people running and discussing the politics of running is just not very interesting.

[@CanadianMonarchist]

Eric and Sam aren’t posh.

[@dmacmillion]

Gene Siskel was right.

[@remohj]

Ebert was right. If you don't see it there is argument to convince you.

[@remohj]

There is NO argument to convince you.

[@dmacmillion]

@@remohj you flirt.

[@theresamahfouz790]

I agree with Ebert. Also, he was right that it's subjective.

[@eargasm1072]

A good, well made but an emotionally flat story...i feel it is overrated

[@lw3646]

It was set I the 20s in the UK so people were more restrained back then, so you'll not get scenes of people shouting or crying like you might now.