“My Run”

Looks like Friday night turns into Sports Movie Night for me:) Last Friday I watched another free instant video on Amazon. This time it was “My Run” directed by Tim Vandesteeg and narrated by Billy Bob Thornton. A documentary again.

The movies tells us about a regular guy from Minnesota named Terry Hitchcock who went on an incredible challenge –  run 75 consecutive marathons in 75 consecutive days. Sounds exciting and very inspirational. Unfortunatelly, I didn’t find the film very motivational but rather sad: it just doesn’t give you that sense of someone’s accomplishment that makes you get off the couch and do something.

The story is not about any organized marathon: Terry was running from Minneapolis to the Olympic Atlanta, 75 days, 8 hours each day. He wasn’t doing it for a sport record – he was doing it to raise awareness of single parent’s challenges. The background story is very sad and touching: Terry lost his beloved wife Sue to breast cancer and was struggling to raise three young children on his own. I applaude the cause.

There must be problems with directing or editing. The footage consists of interviews with Terry’s family and team members, and very few seem to be really proud of him. Even Terry himself says “If I were to do it again, I would not”, and his daughter adds that in terms of its goal (raising awareness) the run was not a success. Yes, when Terry crossed the finish line in Atlanta there was just about 20 people greeting him. How come? The film showed at least 3 people on his team in charge of Public Relations. What were they doing?

Another depressing thing is relations between people. Of course, the challenge is big, running for 75 days is not hard just phisically but also psychologically. Nevertheless, seeing almost all the team members (including Terry’s younger son) giving up and going back home was very sad.

Terry Hitchcock did unimaginable. The cause is amazing, but the film is not motivational at all. In the synopsis he is referred to as a hero. I would not question it but for me the real here wasn’t him but his late wife Sue. There’s a lot about her in the movie, and she seemed to be a kind and generous woman with a big heart who also knew what true love is. Terry cited her last letter to him written two days before she died. She talked about her love for her family and God, and it showed lots of wisdom and care for those she was about to leave. It was the most powerful thing in the movie.

“Spirit of the Marathon”

I am adding a new category to my blog – Art & Movies. I think it is great to combine two things that are more close that we normally think – sports and arts. The reason why I am doing it, is that last Friday I watched a movie that made me think for the whole weekend.

Actually, I was just wondering if there are any running movies out there. I googled it, and was happy and surprised to know that there are quite a few.

I am a Prime Member on Amazon, and can watch some movies for free. I found a free one in the Instant Video section – “Without Limits” – and bookmarked it for Friday.

Unfortunatelly, when Friday came I was sad to find out that I had to pay to watch it. Having paid for my Prime Membership I didn’t want to pay extra so I started looking for something eslse.  Amazon gave me some suggestions and I ended up watching a free movie called “Spirit of the Marathon”. I am so happy I came across it! Such a great movie!

It is a documentary released in 2008 about 6 real people from different walks of life training for the famous Chicago Marathon. Some are professional runners, some are dedicated amateurs and first-time maraptoner, an old gentlement, an overweight lady, a person with disability – all running 26.2 miles. They can do a marathon – I can do a 5k!

The movie is also backed by expert comments and some history, and together with real stories, emotions, and passion for runing it all makes it a great watch. Highly recommended.