Directed by James Mangold best known for 2005’s Walk the Line and 2017’s Logan, Ford v Ferrari is a brilliant car racing movie remarkable for its terrific acting performances, entertaining story, and thrilling race sequences, all adding up to a film that can be enjoyed even by those who do not care for cars or racing. Based on a true story, the plot follows Ford Motor Company’s pursuit of winning their first 24 Hours of Le Mans race and finally overtaking the dominance of Ferrari. Ford Vice President Lee Iacocca, played by Jon Bernthal, pitches the idea in 1963 of creating a competitive racing team to Ford CEO Henry Ford II, played by Tracy Letts, as a means to appeal to the younger generation of car buyers, and he approaches famed car designer Carroll Shelby, played by Matt Damon, to help design the car to beat Ferrari. A brilliant yet somewhat eccentric Texan, Shelby is confident that, with the right mechanics and driver, he can optimize a Ford GT40 to compete and eventually win the coveted 24 Hours of Le Mans, which he himself won in 1959 in a different car before he was forced to retire. The only problem Shelby encounters is the complicated bureaucracy of such a large company as Ford, especially as it relates to Shelby’s handpicked driver Ken Miles, played by Christian Bale. Miles is a hot-headed yet excellent British race car driver who is struggling to make a living as a mechanic in Los Angeles with his wife Mollie, played by Caitriona Balfe best known for her role in the TV series Outlander. The Ford Motor Company and its racing division led by Ford Senior Executive Vice President Leo Beebe, played by Josh Lucas, are very much against having such a wild and brash lead driver as Miles and try almost anything to get rid of him, at least in public. Amidst all the dramatic infighting, the movie is filled with truly exciting and realistic racing scenes that show exactly how difficult it is to be an endurance race car driver and the very real dangers of serious injury or death, especially during that era when safety standards were lower than today’s. Eventually, Shelby American and Ford make it to the crucial Le Mans race in 1966 where they will finally have the best chance of taking down Ferrari. Overall, I found it to be one of the best auto racing movies ever made as a result of its extraordinary intense race sequences and surprisedly in-depth character studies of the iconic automotive designer Carroll Shelby and one-of-a-kind daredevil Ken Miles, making for an extremely entertaining cinematic experience for all types of viewers.
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