FORD V FERRARI (2019) *** ½

I’m not much of a gearhead or anything, but I do enjoy me a good car movie every now and then.  I’m also a sucker for a good underdog sports flick.  The two roads intersect with James Mangold’s gripping, expertly crafted drama, Ford v Ferrari.

It tells the true story of how American car maker Ford Motors challenged Ferrari’s dominance at the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans race.  Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts) gives car designer Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) carte blanche to create a car that can beat Ferrari.  His pick to drive the car is Ken Miles (Christian Bale), a notoriously prickly driver who does not play well with others, especially corporate scum like Leo Beebe (Josh Lucas).  It’s up to Shelby and Miles to not only defeat Ferrari on the track but cut through Ford’s bureaucracy in order to get the job done off the track.  

Like all good underdog films, it follows the Rocky formula of having your heroes suffer a defeat before the no holds barred rematch.  There are also montages because, what would a sports movie be without montages?  Mangold’s camera gets up close on the drivers and the cars during the racing scenes, so you feel like you’re right in the middle of the action.  (I’m especially proud of myself for not typing “so you feel like you’re in the driver’s seat".)  

The film wouldn’t work so well if it wasn’t for the excellent cast off the track.  Damon and Bale are complete opposites, which is kind of what makes them a good team.  Their acting styles are as different as oil and water, but they are terrific together.  That works in their characters’ favor too as Shelby has a knack for juggling cars with hobnobbing with corporate suits while Miles is not a people person, but can drive the hell out of a racecar.  

If the film has a fault, it’s that it stops short of showing us what exactly (pardon the pun) drives both men.  Shelby is out to prove that since he can’t drive, he can build a fast car and Miles just wants to race and provide for his family.  Outside of that, they’re rather thinly sketched.  You have to give Damon and Bale credit for enriching their characters, even if they weren’t fully fleshed out on the page.

AKA:  Le Mans ’66.