Racewalkers Review: You’ve Never Seen A Sports Comedy Like This

You’ve never seen a sports comedy like Racewalkers. The most ridiculous (and sometimes heartwarming) story about the most ridiculous sport.

I have seen my fair share of sports comedies, but Racewalkers is a whole new breed of film – and I mean that in a good way. Yes, racewalking is a real sport and yes, it looks absolutely ridiculous – which this film not only knows, but fully embraces. Aside from that though, Racewalkers plays very seriously, which is why it works so well.

Kevin Claydon stars as Matt who happens to have a knack for racewalking – perhaps because he was a successful baseball pitcher – who is discovered by Will (Phil Moniz). Will’s cousin Ched (Robbie Amell) is a racewalker as his Uncle Kurt (Greg Bryk). Of course, Will meets Matt just in time to start training as an Olympic hopeful, which causes a hilarious rivalry between him and Ched.

Brilliantly, Moniz and Claydon pull triple duty. Not only are the two main actors in the film, they wrote it, and direct it. Somehow they pull it all off, which should be applauded because they easily could have been pulled in too many directions, finding themselves stretched thin, to the point where none of this works. Thankfully, it all does.

Racewalkers is a silly movie, should come as no surprise to anyone. When it wants to be funny, it is laugh-out-loud funny. But it also knows how to deliver on the heartwarming and emotional moments as well. There is a lot of family drama and issues weaved throughout the film that make it relatable to almost anyone watching because admit it, we all have someone in the family we have issues with.

This film allows friendship to blossom. It not only shines a light on this sport that many have never heard of, it also puts the spotlight on the fact that good friends are hard to come by and so when you do find them, never let them go. Sometimes, maybe a little too often, our relationships with our friends can be stronger than those we have with our families.

I refuse to spoil anything, but there is a bit of love story weaved in here as well.

There is a lot to love about Racewalkers. It is a unique and entertaining story that perfectly combines humor and heart. The lead actors have fantastic chemistry together thanks to many years of Moniz and Claydon working together. It truly shines through the film taking it to the next level.

Amell is always great and he gives his all to the role of Ched. He is fully committed to racewalking, even though he looks absolutely ridiculous doing it. He also brings his A-game in terms of the rivalry he has with both Claydon and Moniz’s characters. The three of them together are a lot of fun, and I hope to see them work on more projects together.

This movie knows what it is. It knows that racewalking is a sport that is not very well known, and it knows that the athletes doing it don’t exactly look cool while they are. Having that clarity and the ability to poke fun at itself, while still taking the sport seriously when it needs to, is why Racewalkers is as good as it is. That, and the fantastic performances.

NEXT: Bring Them Down Review: A Twisted Story With Stellar Lead Performances

About Racewalkers

A struggling racewalking coach and a washed-up pro baseball player with a surprisingly natural stride team up to take on the best walker in the sport.

Racewalkers premieres at Slamdance in Los Angeles on February 21, with an addition screening on February 24.