Streif: One Hell of a Ride
2014 [GERMAN]
Action / Documentary / History / News / Sport

Plot summary
While the ski racers leave Kitzbühel for the next World Cup location, the members of the Kitzbüheler Ski Club (KSC) are already starting preparations for next year’s race. “Streif – One Hell of a Ride” documents this work – both the spectacular and the small tasks – over the course of one year. At the same time, the film follows five athletes – Aksel Lund Svindal, Max Franz, Hannes Reichelt, Erik Guay and Yuri Danilochkin – in their respective native countries, during their summer training and in their free time. As the 2014 Hahnenkamm Race approaches, these two narratives become more and more interwoven, interspersed with stories from the event’s past – until the athletes arrive back in Kitzbühel.
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Very narcissistic mess of great pieces
The failed attempt at making another adrenaline movie
"Streif: One Hell of a Ride" is an Austrian film in the German language with occasional parts in English. it was made in 2014, but came out a bit later, so it has its 2nd anniversary this year. The duo of writer and director are Gerald Salmina and Tom Dauer and it is probably the most known work from both of them, possibly also their longest as it comes close to the 2-hour mark. The title already gives away the subject. This movie is about one of the most difficult competitive skiing races that takes place once a year in the Austrian town of Kitzbühel. It includes interviews with many (former) professional athletes and they give is their take on the Streif and what it meant to them in particular. Unfortunately, as always with these subjects, it is all a bit over the top and exaggerated in terms of how they talk about this. And with "these subjects", I am referring to films that sometimes also focus on adrenaline sports or maybe also mountain climbing for example. But this one is about going downhill and doing so as fast as possible. Once again, they show several skiers perform in car racing and this parallel in terms of need for speed is something I have seen or read about several times. The prime example is of course Luc Alphand. But back to this one here: I may be a bit biased as I have never been a fan of ski racing much, but this documentary is also not one that would turn me into a fan or anybody else if I'm honest. People who love watching ski racing and who know all the people on here (like Rahlves) will certainly enjoy it more, but I did not find it an informative movie and that's pretty bad for such a long film. This film is all about making the Streif an even bigger event than it already is and I don't think that's a good enough foundation for a film. Also the one thing I was missing completely here was the look at the past, show the people from back in the day who turned the Hahnenkammrennen into what it is today. I give it a thumbs-down. Not recommended.