--- title: "Days of Thunder" year: 1990 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/days-of-thunder" fi1m_id: "days-of-thunder" imdb_id: "tt0099371" tmdb_id: 2119 wikidata_id: "Q603696" fi1m_score: 61 critics_score: 36 critics_reviews: 7 published: "2026-09-13" updated: "2026-10-06T10:36:25.694747+00:00" region: "AE" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Days of Thunder (1990) Directed by Tony Scott · 1h 47m · Adventure, Action, Drama, Sport ## Identity Days of Thunder - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/days-of-thunder - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** days-of-thunder - **IMDb ID:** tt0099371 - **TMDB ID:** 2119 - **Wikidata ID:** Q603696 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099371/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/2119, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q603696 **Fi1m score: 61** · Critics 36 from 7 reviews *In a sentence:* A racing film that could use a few more minutes parked beside Robert Duvall > Tony Scott makes the stock-car racing exciting, and Robert Duvall gives the film someone worth listening to. The thin writing and neglected romance make this one for racing enthusiasts rather than everyone else. ## Synopsis Cole Trickle (Tom Cruise) is a stock-car driver whose life on and off the track supplies the action in this racing drama. Robert Duvall plays Harry Hogge, alongside Nicole Kidman as Dr Claire Lewicki and Michael Rooker as Rowdy Burns. Competition, ambition and romance occupy Cole as the film moves between racing and the people around him. Randy Quaid appears as Tim Dalander, Cary Elwes as Russ Wheeler and John C. Reilly as Buck Bretherton. Tony Scott directs from Robert Towne’s screenplay, with the story credited to Towne and Cruise. ## Review Tony Scott’s *Days of Thunder* is decent entertainment for racing enthusiasts, though its thin drama will test everyone else’s patience. The attraction is straightforward: Tom Cruise, competition and cars filmed to make their speed felt. Most critics take a harsher view than we do. We think they undervalue the excitement of the racing and the amount Robert Duvall contributes to a film that otherwise struggles to make its people interesting. Ward Russell’s photography gives the stock cars enough weight to make their speed alarming. We were excited by the racing, even when we had little investment in who was winning. There is pleasure in watching machinery pushed hard, and Scott understands how to sustain it. The trouble begins when the same insistence is applied to conversations, as though a quieter exchange might cause the audience to wander off. Chris Lebenzon, Billy Weber and their fellow editors keep the racing urgent, but the film does not find an equally useful pace for its conversations. At 107 minutes, it should not feel short of time to develop a relationship. Yet Robert Towne’s screenplay repeatedly asks familiar situations to do the work of character. The dialogue around racing leans on sexual suggestion, which grows tiresome and leaves precious little space for anyone to have an unexpected thought. Cruise’s Cole Trickle is watchable because Cruise understands the appeal of confidence, even when the writing gives us too little to distinguish it from vanity. The grin does a fair amount of work. It becomes less useful when the film asks for emotional weight, and the performance never quite makes those changes convincing. Duvall, as Harry Hogge, is easier to believe, giving ordinary speech enough patience and feeling that we stop waiting for the next race. Nicole Kidman brings some welcome spirit to Dr Claire Lewicki, and she deserves more from the romance than the screenplay offers. Too much of her part is arranged around making Cole interesting, while her own character receives scant attention. That is especially disappointing because Kidman gives the scenes a firmness that could have supported a more substantial relationship. The film’s treatment of women is a real weakness, and the racing cannot make it disappear. Hans Zimmer’s score contributes to the impression that every scene needs to announce its importance. That helps the races, but it makes the underwritten romantic scenes feel more strained. Scott gives the film little breathing space, and the continued pressure becomes tiring once the cars are out of the picture. A less insistent approach might have helped Cruise and Kidman find a little of the ease that Duvall supplies. Sports dramas can survive familiar plotting when the person competing earns our concern. Cole never quite does, which puts a limit on how much the film can offer once the immediate excitement wears off. Racing enthusiasts may find that an acceptable bargain for an evening. Anyone hoping the romance will carry the film should choose something else. *Fi1m score 61, published 13 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics find Days of Thunder a loud, expensive Tom Cruise vehicle that recycles the Top Gun formula and has little to say beyond it. Five of the seven reviews are negative, and the complaints repeat: stock situations, a story that plays every scene at the same pitch, and a commercial’s idea of drama. Where there is praise, it goes to two places. Tony Scott’s racing footage is credited with making the audience feel the speed, and Robert Duvall’s performance is singled out almost everywhere as the film’s one reliable pleasure. The disagreements are small and sit near the bottom of the scale. RogerEbert.com is the only outright recommendation, allowing that the film is predictable but entertaining. Variety credits Robert Towne’s screenplay with reaching for substance; the Los Angeles Times calls it malnourished. Slant Magazine goes furthest, calling the film hollow and misogynistic in its handling of its female lead, an angle the earlier reviews barely raise. ## Straight answers **Is Days of Thunder worth watching?** *Days of Thunder* is worth watching for racing enthusiasts and no one else in particular, and we scored it 61. Tony Scott makes the stock-car racing exciting and Robert Duvall gives the film someone worth listening to, but the writing is thin and the romance is neglected. Anyone hoping the drama will carry the evening should choose something else. **How long is Days of Thunder, and what is it rated?** *Days of Thunder* runs 1h 47m. It is an adventure and action film. **Where can I watch Days of Thunder in the UAE?** *Days of Thunder* is available to rent from Apple TV from AED 18.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service. **How violent or frightening is Days of Thunder, and is it suitable for children?** *Days of Thunder* carries a UK 12 certificate, and the racing is exciting rather than frightening. The dialogue around the sport leans heavily on sexual suggestion, which is the main reason it sits above a family rating and grows tiresome even for adults. Older children who like cars will be fine; younger ones may be bored once the cars stop. **How does Days of Thunder compare to The Hustler?** [*The Hustler*](https://film.one/film/the-hustler) is the better film by a clear distance, and *Days of Thunder* is the louder one. Both follow a gifted competitor whose confidence is tested by an older man with more experience, but Robert Rossen builds real people around the pool table, while Tony Scott gives his people little to say between races. Choose *Days of Thunder* for speed and *The Hustler* for drama. **What should I watch after Days of Thunder?** After *Days of Thunder*, try [*The Hustler*](https://film.one/film/the-hustler) (1961, Fi1m 88): Another gifted competitor whose confidence needs testing by someone with more experience. Then [*Rush*](https://film.one/film/rush) (2013, Fi1m 82): For a racing rivalry given more room to become a human relationship. ### Reviews we read (7) - **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (70/100, inferred): The film is an entertaining but predictable Tom Cruise vehicle that recycles familiar elements from his earlier hits like Top Gun. It excels in its fast, loud stock-car racing footage and strong supporting performances, particularly from Robert Duvall. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/days-of-thunder-1990) - **Los Angeles Times**, Sheila Benson (50/100, inferred): The NASCAR racing footage and Tom Cruise's grin provide the main appeal, but Robert Towne's screenplay is malnourished and the film feels flat overall despite its flashy style. Director Tony Scott delivers exciting race sequences that make audiences feel the speed. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-06-27-ca-446-story.html) - **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (30/100, inferred): The movie is a noisy, adrenaline-pumping commercial-like spectacle focused on Tom Cruise and racing cars, but it lacks coherent storytelling and makes every scene feel equally intense. Tony Scott directs with visual flair but fails to translate the enthusiasm for stock-car racing into effective drama. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1990/06/27/movies/review-film-tom-cruise-and-cars-and-a-lot-of-them.html) - **Time Out**, NF (30/100, inferred): A flashy, pre-packaged racing picture with stock situations that loses momentum and becomes tedious after a key crash. The critic singles out Robert Duvall's sterling performance and Nicole Kidman's spirited scenes for relief from the tedium. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/days-of-thunder) - **Variety** (**): This expensive stock-car racing film recycles elements from Top Gun but benefits from Robert Towne's screenplay aiming for more substance. The real glory is Robert Duvall's performance, while the mix of Cruise's charm and emotional portrayal is uncertain and unsatisfying. [Read](https://variety.com/1989/film/reviews/days-of-thunder-1200428447/) - **Empire**, Ian Nathan (20/100, inferred): The film fails awfully as a preordained commercial product lacking surprise, romance or heart. It is a formulaic, shallow automaton of a movie with technical skill but no humanity, suited only for die-hard fans. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/days-thunder-review/) - **Slant Magazine**, Clayton Dillard (20/100, inferred): The critic dismisses the film as hollow and misogynistic, arguing it functions as a masturbatory fantasy for dumb dudes rather than offering any meaningful critique of its macho, commercial world. He singles out the film's crude treatment of its female lead and pervasive sexual innuendo mixed with racing jargon for particular scorn. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/summer-of-90-days-of-thunder/) ## Details - **Director:** Tony Scott - **Director:** Tony Scott - **Screenplay:** Robert Towne - **Story:** Robert Towne, Tom Cruise - **Cinematography:** Ward Russell - **Editor:** Michael Tronick, Bert Lovitt, Robert C. Jones, Chris Lebenzon, Billy Weber, Stuart Waks - **Music:** Hans Zimmer - **Costume design:** Susan Becker - **Producer:** Don Simpson, Jerry Bruckheimer - **Cast:** Tom Cruise as Cole Trickle; Robert Duvall as Harry Hogge; Nicole Kidman as Dr. Claire Lewicki; Randy Quaid as Tim Dalander; Cary Elwes as Russ Wheeler; Michael Rooker as Rowdy Burns; Fred Thompson as Big John; John C. Reilly as Buck Bretherton - **Runtime:** 1h 47m - **Release (the UAE):** 27 August 2018 - **Genres:** Adventure, Action, Drama, Sport - **Budget:** $60 million - **Box office:** $158 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyTrK5tqJg0 ## Where to watch in the UAE - Apple TV: rent AED 18.99, hd - Apple TV: buy AED 34.99, sd *Checked 2026-09-13.* Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, IE, IL, IN, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - Academy Awards 1991: Best Sound (nominated) ## If you liked this - *Grand Prix* (1966): For racing filmed with patience, allowing the cars and drivers room. - *The Hustler* (1961), Fi1m 88: Another gifted competitor whose confidence needs testing by someone with more experience. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-hustler.md) - *Redline* (2009): Animation pushes racing speed beyond anything a camera could sensibly follow. - *The World's Fastest Indian* (2005): A gentler motor-racing film, with affection for the person doing the tinkering. - *Rush* (2013), Fi1m 82: For a racing rivalry given more room to become a human relationship. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/rush.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/days-of-thunder