Directed by:
James MangoldCinematography:
Phedon PapamichaelCast:
Matt Damon, Christian Bale, Jon Bernthal, Caitríona Balfe, Tracy Letts, Josh Lucas, Noah Jupe, Remo Girone, Ray McKinnon, JJ Feild, Corrado Invernizzi (more)VOD (4)
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US car designer Carroll Shelby and racer Ken Miles team up to end Enzo Ferrari's reign at Le Mans in this Oscar winner. (Netflix)
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Reviews (17)
A more sweeping, layered and playful ride than the slightly older Rush, which by the way was much more focused and coherent than this racing part comedy, part drama. In terms of the acting, it's similarly strong, I'd even say Damon delivers one of his best performances, but at times it’s not as hard-hitting and nuanced as Ron Howard's masterpiece. Mangold loses at the finish line, but he’s racing in a slightly different category. The link remains primarily the smell of gasoline.
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Mangold, as always, follows the path of least resistance. This gasoline-soaked bromance thus favors cliche and simple shortcuts over complexity. Sometimes, Mangold's routine is funny (the way he helps himself by creating a disgusting villain, a B-movie caricature of a Ferrari driver), sometimes it’s a little irritating (will the directors really keep only giving Bernthal roles to play in a coma?), but mostly it’s just straightforward fun. The racing sequences are shot with confidence and with the pedal to the floor. Bale and Damon talk about electric innovations, and the former can conjure more intensity with his expression behind the wheel than the spectacular somersaults of racing cars at the curb of a country road in Le Mans. This film praises honest garage guys who face the dementia of people in suits with their hearts and over sensitivity. Just like Rush, it’s impossible not to like it. At the same time, however, one cannot get rid of the feeling that the best story in the history of motorsport has more horses under the hood than Mangold was able to take advantage of. He is simply such a reliable Ford van with a stable, bubbling diesel engine. Not a passionate twelve-cylinder.
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A memorial to Ken Miles and his friendship with Carroll Shelby. Mangold directs the wonderfully clear screenplay so surehandedly that the two and a half hours spent in the theater just fly by. Ford v Ferrari is a real hit with fantastic race scenes, one-liners from Bale with his brutal British accent and Shelby’s talent as a saboteur. The fight with the big corporation encumbered with a bureaucratic system and dumb managerial decisions works just fine (and in itself mirrors today’s ridiculous times when they couldn’t get the rights to use the title Ford v Ferrari inside the European Union), but it all stands on the performances of Bale, Damon and the Ford GT40.
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Another great role for Christian Bale, who once again delivers an astonishing performance. This actor and his skills account for about half of the drive of this fun, light-hearted, cool, fast ride with some intimate undertones. In every scene, Mangold’s direction is clearly heading to the climax, which delivers not one but three summaries of the story. But the balance and emotional and intellectual connection of these summaries could be questioned, which constitutes the fatal shortcoming of the film.
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If you missed Rush, it's a pity that no one made a follow-up with a similar type of film. But you don't have to be sad anymore, because Ford v Ferrari is exactly the same petrol-scented racing “fairy tale made by men, for men". This time it’s about how a legend and one of the most iconic racing cars of all time was born. Mangold, whether on the track or behind the scenes, puts the pedal to the metal for two and a half hours, the races are pumped full of adrenaline, the characters are strong, the tension and the bets are tangible, the stylization of all participants including the racers, sponsors and bureaucracy is first rate, and everything is depicted with humor and drama. And in terms of craftsmanship, it couldn't have been any better. And the bunch of actors really enjoying the show is just the icing on the cake. The less academically biographical or historically precise, the more riveting and more stylish. And, above all, better.
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Photo © 20th Century Fox
![Ford v Ferrari - Photos](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/165/559/165559562_22440a.jpg)
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