Film

The Boys in the Boat

Name: The Boys in the Boat
Genre: Drama, History
Released: 2023
Cast: Joel Edgerton, Callum Turner, Peter Guinness, Sam Strike, Thomas Elms

Drama

A Depression-era underdog sports drama about working-class boys who build an Olympic rowing team from nothing. Gorgeously shot, emotionally earned, aimed squarely at people who love the idea of discipline, brotherhood, and improbable triumph. Sweeping without being showy.

TMDb rating

3.6

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love sports stories built on patient craft, where the drama lives in cold mornings, crew rhythms and a team slowly learning to move as one body.

Skip it if you want a swift, twisty thriller; this is a earnest, sentimental period piece that takes its time and wears its heart on its sleeve.

What it asks of you: Settle in for just over two hours of steady, warm storytelling, with long stretches of practice and dialogue before the races bring the pulse up.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Chariots of Fire1981

The template for how to make an Olympic story matter beyond the finish line. Both films use sport as a lens for examining class, sacrifice, and what it costs to transcend your circumstances. Quietly devastating.

But Made over 40 years ago and shot like it—static by modern standards. The pacing is deliberate, almost ministerial, which some find meditative and others find slow.

Darkest Hour2017

Another Joe Wright period drama about ordinary people pressed into impossible circumstances and finding unexpected reserves of resolve. The same visual richness and the same belief that character matters more than spectacle.

But Gary Oldman's accent work divides people sharply. Some find it revelatory; others find it distracting. The film also moves slowly for a historical thriller.

Cinderella Man2005

Depression-era underdog sports film with the same emotional DNA—a working man clawing his way up against impossible odds, with family as both motivation and anchor. Russell Crowe, boxing, and genuine stakes throughout.

But Ron Howard's direction is competent but safe. It hits every beat you expect it to, which means there are no surprises and almost no moments that sting.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Boys in the Boat

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

True Grit2010

Both use the constraint of a specific skill or discipline—rowing, marksmanship—as the frame for examining how ordinary people find dignity through mastery. Both are uninterested in false sentiment.

Joel Coben and Ethan Coen's adaptation shares the same austere, unsentimental belief in competence and character as the primary measure of a person. Both films move at their own pace and reward patience with genuine moments of grace. Watch how the Coens photograph work and concentration.

But It's a western, which some viewers approach with suspicion. The ending is quieter and sadder than expected—there's no triumphant finale, just the consequence of choices made.

Hidden Figures2016

Another ensemble underdog story about people overcoming systemic barriers through brilliance and determination. Same emotional architecture, different setting—space exploration instead of rowing. Moves with real momentum.

But Occasionally leans toward uplift at the expense of historical accuracy. The endings of individual arcs can feel softened to keep the tone broadly inspirational.

Apollo 131995

Masterclass in how to build and sustain tension through meticulous craftsmanship and teamwork. Both films believe that the real drama is in competence, preparation, and men learning to trust each other under pressure.

But The pacing is methodical. If you're watching for action or plot reversals, you'll be disappointed—it's all about process and problem-solving.

The Crown2016

Lush, formally composed historical drama that trusts viewers to care about duty, discipline, and the weight of expectation. Visual storytelling that rewards attention. Season two especially captures the tension between personal desire and institutional obligation.

But Wildly uneven in quality across seasons. Later episodes drift toward soap opera. Also, ten hours is a commitment for something that sometimes feels like very expensive television.

Tolkien2019

Another portrait of a man forged by war and camaraderie, finding transcendence through craft. Nicolas Hoult and the film's quiet reverence for deep friendship. Both stories understand that brotherhood is built through shared hardship.

But The framing device of an older Tolkien reflecting on his life feels unnecessary and disrupts the pacing. The film also looks a bit muddy—period-appropriate maybe, but not beautiful.

Newsies1992

Gloriously unironic musical about working-class boys banding together for something bigger than themselves. Depression-era New York, choreography by Kenny Ortega, real joy in the craftsmanship. Shameless earnestness in the best way.

But Musical numbers will completely stop the film for some viewers. Christian Bale's accent is inconsistent. It's deliberately campy in places, which doesn't land for everyone.

The Patriot2000

Mel Gibson as a reluctant leader learning to forge a militia from farmers and misfits into something that functions as a unit. Shares the same DNA of class transcendence and discipline building character under fire.

But Historically dubious in ways that grate. Revels in violence that the rowing film's restraint makes look mannered. Feels like a relic of early-2000s action cinema in a way that hasn't aged gracefully.

Hoop Dreams1994

Both examine how sports offer the illusion of meritocracy to people without other doors. Both are, underneath, about systems and luck masquerading as destiny.

Three-hour documentary following two Black basketball players from Chicago over five years. Same DNA as *The Boys in the Boat*—sport as pathway out of poverty, the toll of institutional pressure, the contingency of success. Devastating and necessary.

But It's a documentary, not a drama. No score, no shaped narrative arcs—just the texture of actual lives unfolding. Requires active attention. Heavy in ways the film cannot be.

Moonlight2016

Both use a specific male space—a boat, a neighborhood—as the container for exploring how men become themselves. Both understand that transformation happens in silence, through presence with others.

Three-act portrait of a boy becoming a man under impossible circumstances. Formal, lyrical, genuinely transcendent. Barry Jenkins photographs intimacy and vulnerability the way *The Boys in the Boat* photographs oars cutting water. A masterpiece about how we build ourselves from nothing.

But Slow-paced, almost meditative. Very little dialogue. The final act will seem like nothing happens unless you're attuned to the emotional register of a glance. Asks a lot of the viewer.