FORD V. FERRARI : Tuesday 19th November 2019.

'FORD v FERRARI' is an M-Rated American biographical drama film which I saw earlier this week, and is Directed and Co-Produced by James Mangold, whose previous film making credits include 'Cop Land', 'Girl, Interrupted', 'Walk the Line', '3:10 to Yuma', 'Knight and Day', 'The Wolverine' and 'Logan'. In early stages of development, Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt were cast in the starring roles, but those plans fell through, paving the way for Matt Damon and Christian Bale to take on the two leads. The film cost US$98M to make, was released in the US last week too having seen its World Premier showing at Telluride in late August, then at TIFF in September, has garnered widespread Critical acclaim, and has so far recouped US$63M of its initial budget outlay.

The film opens up with Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) competing in, and ultimately winning the 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race when he co-drove the Aston Martin DBR1 beating out fierce rivals Ferrari. Due to an emerging heart condition that made it riskier for him to race, Shelby retires from racing following his Le Mans victory but kept his motivation very much alive to beat the Ferrari's, who had previously turned him down for a driving position. We then fast forward four years to 1963, and  the Ford Motor Company Vice President Lee Iacocca (Jon Bernthal) proposes to Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts) to purchase the cash-strapped Ferrari as a means to boost their flagging car sales by participating in the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in order to attract the emerging younger more affluent customer demographic. On a trip to Maranello in Italy - the Ferrari HQ, Enzo Ferrari (Remo Girone), turns his back on the deal, as Fiat counter offers him a much more attractive deal that allows him to retain his ownership of his racing team and pride and joy, Scuderia Ferrari.

Enzo Ferrari insults Henry Ford II and puts a slur on him personally and his company, which Iacocca takes back to Detroit and recounts to Fords face. As a result of this, a furious Ford II orders his racing division to build a car to defeat Ferrari at Le Mans. For this project, Iacocca hires Shelby American owner Carroll Shelby, who at first is very reluctant and sceptical, but when told by Iacocca that money is no object, he relents. In turn, Shelby enlists the help of Ken Miles (Christian Bale), a hot-tempered and highly opinionated British racing car driver and cash strapped motor mechanic relocated to southern California from his native Birmingham in England, with his wife Mollie (Catriona Balfe) and young son Peter (Noah Jupe).

Miles is also very sceptical of Ford's intentions at first and takes some convincing by Shelby to come on board, but eventually does so, with the promise of US$200 a day plus expenses as an inducement - much needed under his dire financial circumstances at the time, with the IRS having recently repossessed his mechanical workshop.

Shelby and Miles test drive the Ford GT40 Mk I prototype at Los Angeles International Airport, putting the new vehicle through its paces and one by one ironing out all of its design flaws until it is race ready. Deeming that Miles is not their ideal driver on the grounds of his outspokenness and unpredictability to mouth off, Ford opts to send Phil Hill and Bruce McLaren to the 1964 Le Mans race instead, who are much better versed in the marketing and PR protocols likened by Ford. As predicted by Miles, none of the Fords finish the race. Shelby is summonsed by Henry II who sees this result as a humiliating defeat. However, Shelby explains to him that the GT40 instilled fear in Ferrari, as it reached a record breaking 218 mph on the Mulsanne straight before it broke down.

Shelby and Miles continue working on the development of the GT40 Mk II, but Miles is nearly killed when the car's brakes fail during testing. In 1966, Ford Senior Vice President Leo Beebe (Josh Lucas) takes over the racing division, with the intent to continue the program without Miles.

On a trip out to Shelby's HQ to see for himself where his US$9M race car investment is being spent, Shelby gives Henry II a ride in the car around the test track at top speed. Henry II has never experienced anything like this before, and is an emotional wreck when Shelby brings the car to an abrupt halt. To make Henry II see sense, he bets his own company, Shelby American, on the line to convince him that if Miles wins the 24 Hours of Daytona race, then he will be granted to race at Le Mans later in the year.

Shelby American enters Daytona with Miles behind the wheel. Beebe puts a second Ford team in the race with a proven NASCAR crew supporting them in the pits. While the second team has quicker pit stops, Shelby has Miles push his car's limit to 7,000 RPM, which sees him winning the race, much to the chagrin of Beebe, and the tongue in cheek disappointment of Henry II for not winning Shelby American.

And so the 1966 Le Mans race day arrives. During the opening lap Miles has problems with his door, which won't close and so pits at the end of the first lap, and so team engineer Phil Remington (Ray McKinnon) fixes the door with a mallet. Thereafter, Miles begins to set lap records while catching up with the Ferrari's. While racing with Ferrari driver Lorenzo Bandini (Francesco Bauco), Miles experiences brake failure and has his whole brake system replaced during his pit stop. Enzo Ferrari protests the move, but Shelby convinces the race officials that there is nothing written in the race rule book that says a team cannot replace the whole brake system, at which point the official backs down.

Miles and Bandini once again battle it out on the Mulsanne Straight until Bandini blows his engine, completely eliminating Ferrari in the race. About 21 hours into the race, Miles has driven convincingly amassing a significant lead, leaving three Ford teams in the top-three positions. Beebe hits upon an idea and orders Shelby to have Miles slow down for the other two Fords to catch up with him and provide the press with a three-car photo finish. Miles is initially against this decision, continuing to set new lap records towards the end of the race, but decides to let Ford have their way on the final lap. 

The French race officials, after initially agreeing to Ford's dead-heat 'photo-finish', reneged after the fact, stating that as the McLaren/Amon #2 car had started some 20 yards behind the Miles/Hulme #1 car, it had travelled a farther distance, and as such Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon were declared the winners on a technicality, with Miles and Hulme being awarded second place. Miles is however, graceful in his defeat and grateful to Shelby for giving him the chance to race at Le Mans.

Two months after Le Mans and following almost a day of testing the new model J-car at Riverside International Raceway in the blisteringly hot Southern California desert summer weather, Miles approached the end of the track's one mile, downhill back straight at a top speed of 200+ mph when the car suddenly looped, flipped, crashed and exploded in a ball of flame. The car broke into pieces and ejected Miles, killing him instantly. Miles was aged 47 when he died on August 17th 1966.

You don't have to be a petrol-head die hard fan of motor sport to like 'Ford v. Ferrari'. The film has a true story to tell, that Director Mangold keeps grounded in the truth and the facts surrounding these moments in motor sporting history that saw the true underdog of American motor manufacturing defeat the Italian Goliath's dominance on the race track over successive years. The pairing of Damon and Bale is well matched as two close friends who overcome adversity both on and off the race track, frustrations with the corporate establishment, numerous roadblocks and questionable decisions to ultimately win through yet pay the ultimate price in doing so. The story line is compelling, well scripted, the race sequences are very well realised, the performances strong and as an overall package it's a real crowd pleaser and a throw back to those films of yesteryear of a similar ilk - 1966's 'Grand Prix' and 1971's 'Le Mans' - in terms of spectacle and emotion, but updated with all the modern gloss that Hollywood can throw at it.

'Ford v. Ferrari' merits four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-