The Palio is said to be the oldest horse race in the world. You can get into the details of the race and its history here. We aren't going to go into that detail this time, although we might in the future.

The ancient race itself is fascinating, and the film does a good job of weaving its history into the plot, which centres on two jockeys, master and apprentice, fighting for the 2015 Palios (there are two races per year). The really interesting bit is that for a year in the build up, the teams set about gaining an advantage in whatever way they can, and everyone knows it. Plenty of offers that can be refused and negotiated it seems.