I know next to nothing about cars, and while it’s pretty clear director, James Mangold, is way more in love with these cars we see on screen than I am, he knows that it’s ultimately the people behind the wheel that can get someone like me invested. Like all the great sports movies, the sport itself isn’t as important for the film as the players are. With Mangold’s new film, Ford v Ferrari, he and writers, Jez and John-Henry Butterworth and Jason Keller, do a wonderful job in taking that very approach to the film, honing in on the lives and struggles that the film’s real life subjects went through.
In the film, we see that Ford Motor Company is experiencing a drop in sales, so Lee Iacocca (Jon Bernthal) comes up with an idea to make Ford sexy again, which is by having Ford compete in the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans, which Ferrari has claimed victory over for years and years. Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon), a former driver who won the Le Mans in 1959, is brought in to help with the design of a new automobile, and Carroll enlists the help of the brilliant, but hot-tempered racer, Ken Miles (Christian Bale), to help get the project going, and win the race.
The first thing one will take note of is how beautifully made the film is, which shouldn’t be a surprise since Mangold is a very talented filmmaker. The period details are rich, and not super on-the-nose, there’s a very patient, classical feel to the filmmaking that is reflected in the story’s methodical pacing. And when it comes to the racing scenes, they’re visceral, thrilling, and seemingly utilize as much on-camera stunt work as possible. The roars of the engine hit you on a deep level, and it is very satisfying seeing it up on the big screen, reminding me of Ron Howard’s Rush, which was an excellent racing film that not enough people saw.
The film is largely about the friendship between Carroll and Miles, the way they work together, the way they both bicker and find camaraderie when it comes to their love of cars and racing. We get many glimpses at Miles’ private life, which includes his wife, Mollie (Caitriona Balfe) and his son, Peter (Noah Jupe). The scenes with the family are where the film finds its heart, as it lingers on mostly quiet moments between husband and wife or father and son, and the actors all work very well together, creating a believable and empathetic dynamic that pays off emotionally in the very end.
An interesting thing is that the movie itself almost acts as a metaphor, whether intentional or not, for the art of filmmaking within a studio system. Carroll and Ken are both passionate creatives who are brought onto a project because of their skills, but they are constantly having to deal with the corporate interests of Ford, mostly from a delightfully slimy executive Leo (Josh Lucas). So, there is often a back-and-forth that happens between the creatives defending their choices and explaining themselves while Ford seems to only look out for themselves. I can imagine this being something Mangold might have resonated with, not only having made something like Logan within the modern studio system and surge of PG-13 superhero films, but even with this film being a two-and-a-half hour, adult oriented period drama that costs nearly a hundred million dollars. The passion that Carroll and Ken have are something I’m sure resonated with Mangold, who might have had similar conversations with studio executives, as I’m sure it might with any viewer who considers themselves an artist who has had to deal with people not trusting you to do the work you signed up to do.
Aside from that particular reading, the pleasures of a film like Ford v Ferrari are fairly simple. It’s a very respectable, old fashioned dad movie with plenty of crowd pleasing moments and thrilling setpieces. Not only are Damon and Bale wonderful, but even smaller supporting players like Balfe, Jupe, Lucas, Bernthal, Tracy Letts, and Ray McKinnon effortlessly make huge impressions with the sometimes little material they’re working with. It’s nice to see a film like this still getting made, and with the level of resources that it received at its disposal. The length might seem intimidating, but it flows nicely, there’s a great, inherent satisfaction that comes out of seeing smart people who are really good at what they do try to solve a problem, and its emotionally involving enough to keep you engaged from start to finish.