-Title : Chariots of Fire.
- Country / Year : UK / 1981.
- Runtime : 123 min.
- Genre : Drama / History / Sport.
- Director : Hugh Hudson.
- Written by : Colin Welland.
- Starring : Ben Cross as Harold Abrahams, Ian Charleson as Eric Liddell, Nigel Havers as Lord Andrew, Cheryl Campbell as Jessie Liddell, Alice Krige as Sybil Gordon ( Harold’s girlfriend), Ian Holmes as Sam Mussabini ( Harold’s coach ).

This is the story of two men who run...not to run...but to prove something to the world. They will sacrifice anything to achieve their goals...Except their honour. Two men chasing dreams of glory!
Chariots of Fire is a British film released in 1981. Written by Colin Welland and directed by Hugh Hudson was nominated for seven Academy Awards and won four, best picture, original music score, costume design and writing original screenplay. After this success, Hudson’s movies have been quite dissappointing, among them “Greystoke - The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984) or Revolution (1985). The two main actors are Ben Cross, as Harold Abrahams, and Ian Charleson, as Eric Liddell. Although their role in Chariots of fire was their most important perfomance, or at least their most recognized one, we can also find Ben Cross in other movies, such as First Knight , which starred Richard Gere and Sean Connery, and in the Exorxist sequel in 2004, and Ian Charleson in Jubilee (1977), Gandhi (1982 ) and horror classic Opera (1987). Charleson was gay and died of AIDS at the age of 40.
The film is based on a true story of two British athletes who are chosen to represent Britain in the 1924 Paris Olympics, Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell.Their personality as well as their motivations to run are very different . Harold Abrahams is a Jewish student at Caius College at Cambridge, son of a Lithuanian Jew who runs to overcome class prejudice, antisemitism and prove his worth to society, as he says: “ For me running is a compulsion, a weapon against being Jewish”. Harold is obsessed with winning and can’t face losing, he says after being defeated by Liddell in a warm-up 100 meter race: “I don’t run to take beatings. If I can’t win, I won’t run”. On the other hand Eric Liddell, son of missionary parents in China, is a devout Scottish missionary who combines getting ready for the Olympics with helping his sister to run a local mission. Liddell runs for the glory of God, He knows God gave him a splendid gift, being possibly the swifter man on earth and wants to repay God for that, he says: “I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure”. Certainly the characters are not alike in their motivation, they have very different personalities, ways of thinking, training, but the core of the matter is the same, two good men trying to achieve their goals without betraying their beliefs.

In my view this movie deservedly won 4 Oscars. The plot is great, it keeps you gripped to the screen. The dialogues are deep, rich in meaning. Both Ben Cross playing Harold Abraham and Ian Charleson as Eric Liddell are very believable. The supporting actors are really convincing as well. There are moments to smile and moments which will move you. A very touching moment is when Harold Abrahams wins his race and Sam Mussabini, his trainer, listens to the British anthem and sees the British flag rising in the Olympic Stadium from his room. But it is also an exciting film, even on the basic level of “will they win?”. The races are riveting, partly due to the music and sound effects. The score composed by Vangelis for the film is also outstanding and is the perfect accompaniment to the swift pace of the film and to the unforgettable scene of the cheerful British boys running along the beach. The direction by Hugh Hudson is powerful. Hudson captures the feeling and excitement of track and field competition, as well as giving us numerous beautifully photographed scenes

Therefore, I truly recommend it. It’s really worth watching. I would rate it a 9/10. When you finish watching it, it makes you try to be a better person. So, nowadays when there is so much junk and violence on TV, it’s a good film for everybody to enjoy.

Salva Corcoles