On Set with Rush: Transported to the '70s F3 Racing Era at Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace on a summer’s day, surrounded by Formula 3 cars, mechanics, team trucks and racing drivers. Did I mention it was the early 1970s? Well, everywhere you turn it looks like the ’70s, but really this is 2012 and the cast of Rush is filming an F3 meeting at the old London track.

None of the cars are running today, but when I arrive I’m informed that they’ll be filming James Hunt’s arrival at the circuit in a Mini, Niki Lauda getting into his car and “other scenes if there’s time”. It soon becomes apparent that time is something a film set devours at a remarkable rate.

The first thing that strikes you as you walk into the ‘paddock’ is the attention to detail. Trucks that probably won’t even be in shot are branded as they were in period and everyone is dressed as they should be. There isn’t an iPhone to be seen. That’s peculiar, but not half as strange as the silence during filming. Chris Hemsworth, who plays Hunt, chats at normal volume during each take, while in the background the support actors and actresses silently mouth dialogue – and there isn’t a single engine noise to be heard. The background noise is added in post-production.

Director Ron Howard is perched under a canopy watching each take unfold on a screen and, despite one scene finishing without a hiccup, he bounds out and asks everyone to reset. A quick chat with the cast and we’re off again. On the outskirts of the set sits Daniel Brühl, the actor playing Lauda, and as we’re both merely bystanders in Hunt’s arrival at the circuit we quickly fall into conversation. “I did used to like Formula 1,” the actor tells me in hushed tones, “but I got really bored of it when Michael Schumacher started winning all the time. Not great for a German, eh?”

Brühl is filming scenes later in the day, so is dressed as Lauda – it’s an uncanny resemblance, especially when he starts imitating the three-time world champion. “When I was offered the part I immediately called Niki and asked whether I could visit him, to get to know him a bit. He said, ‘Fine, just bring hand luggage, though’. I asked why and he replied, ‘So if I don’t like you, you can fly straight home’. When I arrived, though, we got on really well and as I was leaving he asked what I was up to that weekend. I wasn’t doing anything and he asked whether I wanted to go to the next grand prix in his jet. I was sat next to him when he was flying the plane complete with his red cap. He’s a truly amazing guy.”

After lunch I get the chance to talk to Howard as we’re walking back from the catering facility. As enthusiastic as he appears in TV interviews, he’s overflowing with energy and answering questions from various members of his team as we walk. He’s famous for the likes of Apollo 13 and Frost/Nixon, but openly admits that he wasn’t into F1 before Rush landed on his desk. “I love baseball, though, so I know how I’d feel if someone made a film about that and didn’t do it justice,” he says. I dare to ask whether not previously being a fan of F1 made Rush a harder prospect. “I’d never been to the moon and I did OK with Apollo 13,” he says, smiling. Fair enough.

It’s the combination of action and human interaction that first attracted Howard to the film, but it becomes clear in the five minutes we spend together that he wants F1 aficionados to enjoy the film. His parting words, shouted back at me as he rushes into position for another take, are telling: “Ed, you must remember that I’m making a movie, not a documentary.”

As the afternoon draws to a close I spot Hemsworth on his own and decide it’s a good time for a few words about playing Hunt. After hearing how Hemsworth had been swatting up on Hunt’s mannerisms on YouTube, the publicist marches up. “Who authorised this?” he demands. Apparently you can’t just walk up to an actor, like you can a racing driver, and ask if it’s OK to have a chat. Five minutes later I have been marched off the set and my Hollywood dream has come to an end.