My heart was always racing.
Is that too corny of an intro? Or is it just right?
Why didn’t I watch this movie in the theaters? If you didn’t either, than I know your pain. Imagine surround sound as the cars race across the massive screen. It would have been a dream come true. And nostalgic. I’m a huge racing fan. It’s kind of in my blood. My mother grew up in the shadow of the Daytona Speedway. I went to college practically across the street. I even went to the Rolex race that the movie features.
And guess what… I was pretty impressed with the accuracy of the movie.
What they did in this movie is the reason that I wanted to be an engineer. Then I got that stupid degree and realized that life doesn’t work that way anymore.
God! To get a movie that had me screaming at the screen and also hiding under the blanket in fear is really good. I was emotionally invested. And where people say that Once Upon a Time in Hollywood had the bromace of the year, I disagree. Damen and Bale were the power couple. Their chemistry was off the charts. Thank you casting gods for delivering us the pairing of the year.
Sometimes I hear the reviews for movies like this and I cringe. There’s no way the big movie reviewers got it right. It’s all a bunch of hype. An over dramatization to sell more tickets. They did it with Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. They did it with A Quiet Place. And they finally got it right for Ford Vs Ferrari.
Okay… okay… let me get to the technical reasons why this was right in every way.
Being a screenwriter, I always come back to the script because that can make or break a movie. If the joke falls flat or the one liner isn’t delivered right, all that investment the audience made is broken. Well guess what, the writing for this one was perfect until like the last five minutes. But that’s a whole other issue to discuss. For me, the last five minutes don’t even exist. It’s Sunshine all over again.
But yes, the writing is top notch. There’s the beautiful bookends. The nice touches on the friendship. The clear painting of the characters and relationships even though these two men have a long history that isn’t seen on the screen. And those classic humor moments that will get you laughing. The writers didn’t try to push their point too hard either. It’s a classic step by step movie structure. There was also room for the actors to carry the characters over the finish line. Because let’s be honest, you can give actors the best lines in the world but it takes skill to deliver them.
Fine, I’m giving them a tiny bit too much credit. There were a few issues. The ending could be seen from a million miles away because the foreshadowing was shoved in our faces. Not cool man. Not cool. Instead of an entire scene, two lines would have been all it took. We didn’t need a drawn out conversation between the engineer and the son. Oh well. Not everyone is perfect.
Moving on from the writing, the next thing I love to talk about is the cinematography and the sets. Thank god the bell bottoms and orange carpet were left at home. Ford vs Ferrari had no problems telling me when it was set. The over the top set design was removed. It was classic and clean and perfect. I personally didn't notice, but someone pointed out that there was a bit of an orange hue in the beginning that went away in the hanger and during the racing. I love that idea, because it set the point of the past versus the future innovation.
If anything, this movie just nailed home that sometimes classic and simple can still deliver a powerful punch.
I can’t end this review without talking about that powerful moment between Ford and Shelby. Did I want to run around like Rocky at the end to the annoyance of my friends… maybe? I’ve never been more annoying than when watching this movie. I don’t know what happened to me. I couldn’t shut up. I was screaming, crying, and fighting for the characters, yelling that they shouldn’t make the choice that was obviously going to bite them in the butt. And then Ford delivered that last line in the scene and I was ready to run around the couch in excitement. I should also say that we watched this after a very long filming day. I have no idea where the energy came from.
Happy Watching
Love Kait