Series Review: "Untold: The Race of the Century" (2022).

From Netflix and the directors of Untold: Crimes & Penalties and Untold: Breaking Point comes Untold: The Race of the Century. This documentary film directed by Chapman Way and Maclain Way. The Australia II yacht crew looks back on the motivation, dedication and innovation that led to their historic victory at the 1983 America's Cup.

The twelve-metre class yacht race, the 1983 America's Cup, pitted the defending New York Yacht Club's Liberty against the Royal Perth Yacht Club's challenger, Australia II. In early September 1983, the New York Yacht Club confirmed that Liberty was to represent the club as defender of the America's Cup after Liberty won all the Defender trials. The September 1983 match race was won by Australia II in the first successful challenge of the New York Yacht Club's one hundred and thirty two-year defense of the Cup. The Australian syndicate's boat, skippered by John Bertrand, fought back from a 3–1 deficit to best the Dennis Conner-helmed defender, ending both the longest winning streak in sporting history and U.S. domination of the racing series. Liberty had competed with Courageous and Defender in a defender series before being selected by the New York Yacht Club. The revolutionary "winged keel" of the Australian yacht was a subject of controversy from the outset of the challenger series, with the New York Yacht club alleging that the winged keel boat was not a legal 12 Meter, and that the keel design itself was the result of Dutch engineers, and not by Lexcen. This second point would have made Australia II illegal under the requirement that the boat be "designed and constructed in country" as the Deed of Gift that governed the competition stipulated. The boat was ruled a legal 12 Meter, and she was allowed to participate in the regatta. The speed of the new contender, along with the controversy and protests intensified international media attention to the series. Australia II dominated the challenger series and entered the America's Cup finals as the most promising contender to date. The U.S. yacht won the first and second races by margins of more than a minute when the Australian yacht suffered equipment failure, but the Australia II took the third race, and came back to win the fifth and sixth races after Liberty won the fourth. This was the first time the America's Cup had needed a sixth race, let alone a seventh.

Film-makers Chapman and Maclain Way were behind the excellent Netflix series Wild Wild Country. They continue the good work here. The choice of this story is an excellent one. It's a compelling story when taken as a whole, whether or not you knew a thing about it going in. What the film does so brilliantly is control that chaos. The key players in the story all explain how they fitted into it, and they go far beneath the surface. While the bulk of the documentary presents an in-depth version of the story we’re familiar with, its most compelling new material chronicles the aftermath.

Simon says Untold: The Race of the Century receives:

Also, see my review for Untold: Breaking Point.