Downhill Racer

Downhill Racer
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMichael Ritchie
Written byJames Salter
Based onThe Downhill Racers
1963 novel
by Oakley Hall
Produced byRichard Gregson
Starring
CinematographyBrian Probyn
Edited byRichard A. Harris
Music byKenyon Hopkins
Production
company
Wildwood
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • October 28, 1969 (1969-10-28) (Reno)
[1]
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1.8 million[2]
Box office$1.9 million[3]

Downhill Racer is a 1969 American sports drama film starring Robert Redford, Gene Hackman and Camilla Sparv,[4] and was the directorial debut of Michael Ritchie.[5] Written by James Salter, based on the 1963 novel The Downhill Racers by Oakley Hall, the film is about a talented downhill skier who joins the United States Ski Team in Europe to compete in international skiing competitions.

Downhill Racer was filmed on location in Kitzbühel and Sankt Anton am Arlberg in Austria, Wengen in Switzerland, Megève and Grenoble in France and Boulder and Idaho Springs in Colorado, United States.[4] The film received positive reviews upon its theatrical release;[6] Roger Ebert called it "the best movie ever made about sports—without really being about sports at all."[7]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference AFI was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ McCarthy, Todd (November 17, 2009). "Downhill Racer: Trailblazer". The Criterion Collection. Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
  3. ^ "Big Rental Films of 1970", Variety, January 6, 1971, p. 11.
  4. ^ a b Michael Ritchie (director) (2009) [1977 AFI audio seminar]. Downhill Racer (DVD). New York: The Criterion Collection.
  5. ^ "Michael Ritchie". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  6. ^ Jenkins, Dan (November 24, 1969). "How to succeed in racing without really racing". Sports Illustrated. p. 66. Archived from the original on October 28, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2017.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference ebert was invoked but never defined (see the help page).