Everytime I watch a movie that revolves around cars, I’m always in awe of characters that seem to know EVERYTHING about them. It blows my mind. How do you know all those things. Is it even possible? I had these thoughts while watching Ford v Ferrari, a couple hours after winning a fairly competitive game of Cinephile, and a day after being the captain of a movie trivia team with my coworkers. I guess people look at me and my copious amounts of movie knowledge the same way I look at car people, huh?
Matt Damon is tasked with the impossible: design a Ford that can take on the champion Ferrari at the 24 hour Le Mans race in France. Christian Bale is driving. That’s basically it. I’m trying to think of a way to expand on the story without getting in the weeds, but I’m drawing a blank. Just a really straightforward underdog story, but somehow absolutely compelling.
I was concerned about the 2.5 hour run time, but I needn’t have been. It felt like it really was running on that race track at Le Mans. What made it so great to watch was the performances from our leading men (okay the car races helped too). Matt Damon is Mr Charisma and can effortlessly carry just about any film. You always root for Damon, no matter what. Once again Christian Bale is Mr Chameleon, but for possibly the first time, you actually see him having fun. For reals tho, have we ever seen him have fun? Even Newsies had him really focused and no-nonsense. Paired with Damon, they were a fantastic team
It was a great mix of adrenline and drama, and every piece of this film was assembled as expertly as a high end sports car. So much so, that this could be a major player come awards season. It doesn’t push any envelopes, but it certainly pleases the crowds. Sometimes the safe and enjoyable choice goes far. Green Book, anyone?
Ford v Ferrari – \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/