(EW.com ) -- Back in 1977, Ron Howard made his directorial debut with a low-budget, high-octane car-crash comedy called "Grand Theft Auto." 

As first impressions go, it did not signal the second coming of Orson Welles. But the freckle-faced former "Happy Days" star radiated an infectious delight in smashing as many roaring muscle cars as he could get away with. 

Since then, of course, Howard has become one of Hollywood's most consistent and respected filmmakers, crafting well-made crowd-pleasers that tackle more highbrow subjects. But judging from his white-knuckle new film, "Rush," he hasn't outgrown his youthful sweet tooth for four-wheeled mayhem. He still has hot rods and the death-defying men who drive them on his mind. 

Based on the real-life rivalry between Formula One racing legends James Hunt and Niki Lauda, "Rush" is a tale of two opposite personalities eyeing the same checkered-flag goal: winning the 1976 world championship. Chris Hemsworth draws the flashier role in Hunt, a fast-burning British bad boy with flowing blond locks, silk shirts unbuttoned to his navel, and a rakish playboy swagger. 

On and off the track, he's wild, cocky, and undisciplined — a deadly combination when you're strapped into a coffin on wheels going 170 miles an hour. ''The closer you are to death, the more alive you feel,'' Hemsworth's Hunt says. And it's thanks to the "Thor" star's champagne-spraying charisma that he makes risking your neck look like the coolest job on the planet. 

As Lauda, "Inglourious Basterds'" Daniel Brühl buries his boyish good looks behind ratlike prosthetic teeth. With his clipped Austrian accent, everything that comes out of his mouth sounds like a brusque insult. And it usually is. He may not be a particularly likable fellow, but he's a methodical grinder with the unshakable conviction of someone who's calculated the odds on what it takes to win. Pitted against each other, they're like Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner. It's not just about beating the other guy, it's about humiliating him in the process. 
what movie was based off a rival?
Based on the real-life rivalry between Formula One racing legends James Hunt and Niki Lauda, "Rush"