Ford v. Ferrari (2019) (1 Viewer)

[Sam Posten]

630 Dolby tonight. It's scoring in the 90s on Metacritic!

 

[steve jaros]

Saw in in Dolby Cinema, it moved fast (haha) and entertained me. See it in the biggest, loudest theater option you can.

I saw it in IMAX today and totally agree - with all the racing action, this is one film that begs to be seen on a bigger screen and with bombastic sound. Plus, as a movie, it works great, the wife and I loved it.

A-

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Saw in in Dolby Cinema, it moved fast (haha) and entertained me. See it in the biggest, loudest theater option you can.

I often don't like the "ultra-bass" you get at Dolby, as it can be overcranked.

it worked for "FvF", though, as the rumble of the cars matched the audio well!

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Not a particularly deep movie, and it indulges in some pretty simplistic characters for the "villains". For a so-called "prestige" movie, there's not really much that elevates the project into something more than a lively underdog story.

But that's good enough for me, as "FvF" delivers a fun ride. It might take too long to get where it needs to go, as the set-up drags more than it probably needs.

That said, since we spend so much of that time with Damon and Bale, I don't mind. The two show good chemistry and make a good on-screen pair. Where else can you see Batman and Jason Bourne assault each other with groceries?

Bale's performance can lean a little broad at times - that's not unusual for him - but he still brings nice heart to the role. The trailers make Ken look like a goofball, but Bale's allowed the room to grow and develop.

Damon basically plays a variant on the typical Matt Damon Performance: laconic and reserved, albeit with a Texas accent. I don't know how much real range Damon boasts, but he does the Matt Damon Performance well, so he helps ground the project, even if the movie leaves Shelby less defined than it should.

"FvF" excels when it finally gets to formal race scenes. Director James Mangold stages these in an ultra-vivid manner that really allows the viewer to feel like they're part of the action.

Nothing here feels like it's Oscar-caliber, as the predictable nature of the good guys vs. the bad guys can seem trite. Nonetheless, it becomes a winning journey that goes by quickly and entertains...

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Oh, one spoilerized complaint:

Spoiler

I wish the movie ended with Shelby and Miles as they discuss plans to improve the car. Give us the usual "here's what happened next" text after that to reveal Ken's death, but leave the actual movie action on an optimistic note.

I'm interested to hear arguments that we need the downer ending, but this is such a feel good movie that I think it should've left the onscreen characters in a more positive way...

 

[Jason_V]

Well, to be honest...

Spoiler

The story they're telling is the redemption of Ken Miles from a hot head who thinks only of himself to someone who puts other people first. He has the moment during the last lap at Le Mans where he thinks it through and he decides to change who he is. The good guy doesn't always win in the end and they do have to settle for moral victories at times. Crossing the line as three Ford's and knowing he did what was asked of him-being a "team player"-was his victory more than the race.

The movie ends on a hopeful note that Caroll Shelby ended up in a better place after working with Ken and helping him to become a more thoughtful person. Yes, Ken dies after the race. That's true to life, right? I am 100% happy with the ending we got. No need to make it happy just to have a happy ending.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Well, to be honest...

Spoiler

The story they're telling is the redemption of Ken Miles from a hot head who thinks only of himself to someone who puts other people first. He has the moment during the last lap at Le Mans where he thinks it through and he decides to change who he is. The good guy doesn't always win in the end and they do have to settle for moral victories at times. Crossing the line as three Ford's and knowing he did what was asked of him-being a "team player"-was his victory more than the race.

The movie ends on a hopeful note that Caroll Shelby ended up in a better place after working with Ken and helping him to become a more thoughtful person. Yes, Ken dies after the race. That's true to life, right? I am 100% happy with the ending we got. No need to make it happy just to have a happy ending.

Spoiler

Not saying they shouldn't tell us Ken dies - just saying we don't need to see it or have it reflected onscreen.

Ken makes his maturity move in the race, and the "walking off into the sunset" Shelby/Ken shot shows Shelby's matured as well. We don't need to see Ken actually die and then dwell with his widow and son.

Very much hope Mangold does a commentary and discusses this topic!

 

[Mark Booth]

Loved it! 5 out of 5 stars! Can't wait to show it in the Booth Bijou Garage Theater!

And I was fine with how the film ended. It's not like we got all that deep of a glimpse into every character anyway. It's a popcorn flick to some degree.

Mark

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Loved it! 5 out of 5 stars! Can't wait to show it in the Booth Bijou Garage Theater!

And I was fine with how the film ended. It's not like we got all that deep of a glimpse into every character anyway. It's a popcorn flick to some degree.

Mark

Oh, it's firmly a popcorn flick. It comes with a few "serious drama" pretensions, but it's mainly a "feisty underdog" tale with lots of cool driving.

It's the "popcorn flick" element that makes the ending seem more out of place to me!

 

[steve jaros]

.........

Nothing here feels like it's Oscar-caliber, as the predictable nature of the good guys vs. the bad guys can seem trite. Nonetheless, it becomes a winning journey that goes by quickly and entertains...

I agree with your characterization of the film, much more surface than depth, but IMO that was appropriate. The film is ultimately about building and driving a better car to win an auto race. That's not as weighty a subject as, say, trying to win the battle of Midway. In the scheme of things, it's a pretty light-weight thing, so IMO focusing the movie on the shiny objects on the surface was the right call.

 

[Robert Crawford]

As a retired GM manager I loved this movie. It reminded me how much I hate corporate suits.

Don't read the following article if you haven't seen the movie.

https://www.inquirer.com/news/leo-beebe-ford-ferrari-k-tron-ron-jaworski-20191114.html

 

[benbess]

Really liked it in IMAX! High octane and yet realistic racing, and surprising moments of emotion. "A-"

PS And great sound in imax.

PPS I think this movie would fit well on Disney+. But will it be included 6 months from now? We'll see, I guess....

A short video about the real story behind it all, which is seemingly close to the movie:

 

[Robert Crawford]

By the way, I loved the

Spoiler

ending

.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I agree with your characterization of the film, much more surface than depth, but IMO that was appropriate. The film is ultimately about building and driving a better car to win an auto race. That's not as weighty a subject as, say, trying to win the battle of Midway. In the scheme of things, it's a pretty light-weight thing, so IMO focusing the movie on the shiny objects on the surface was the right call.

I wasn't really criticizing the lack of depth - I did enjoy the movie.

I was a little surprised because I thought this would be more of an Oscar-bait project than it is. Ya never know with the Academy, but it doesn't feel like something that'll get noms in the non-technical areas...

 

[Colin Jacobson]

As a retired GM manager I loved this movie. It reminded me how much I hate corporate suits.

It makes Iacocca look good, though!

Side note: I watched "Robocop" today and was reminded they mentioned "Lee Iacocca Elementary". Alas, there is no actual Iacocca ES, though now that he's dead, maybe there'll be one!

 

[Jason_V]

Spoiler

Not saying they shouldn't tell us Ken dies - just saying we don't need to see it or have it reflected onscreen.

Ken makes his maturity move in the race, and the "walking off into the sunset" Shelby/Ken shot shows Shelby's matured as well. We don't need to see Ken actually die and then dwell with his widow and son.

Very much hope Mangold does a commentary and discusses this topic!

I still think it was the right call. Probably a bit of Oscar bait in those two decisions for Damon and Bale.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I still think it was the right call. Probably a bit of Oscar bait in those two decisions for Damon and Bale.

Seems like the end

Spoiler

benefits Damon way more than Bale. Bale just gets to get "yikes!" as the brakes fail, whereas Damon gets his Serious Drama Moment at the end.

Now if Bale had let them actually kill him for the ending... THAT'S Oscar-worthy!

 

[Chris Will]

Saw this tonight and thought it was great.

As far as the ending. It was foreshadowed about 50 times throughout the movie, to not follow through would have felt cheap IMO.

 

[Jake Lipson]

I saw this today (well, yesterday, Sunday, since it's after midnight now and technically Monday, even though I haven't been to sleep yet.)

I don't know the first thing about cars. I can't even drive one due to my disability. I have no real concept of how they work under the hood. Racing is of absolutely no interest to me.

I went to the movie because of the people involved in it whose work I have enjoyed in the past (Mangold, Bale, Damon, Letts) and because of the strong reviews and Oscar buzz.

I thought it was fantastic. It was well-written enough so that it seemed specific enough to at least look authentic, but I could follow it and understand what was going on even though I'm out of the loop with car jargon. The journey of the characters worked for me, both in terms of how it was written and because of the performances of the cast. Bale and Damon were great as usual and deserve the praise coming their way, but I especially liked Tracy Letts, who has been good in everything I've seen him in and doesn't get as much credit as he should for the fine and usually appropriately understated work hat he does as an actor. (His work as a playwright, which is great too, tends to get him more attention.)

I am technically aware that it is a long movie, but it didn't feel like one. Mangold isn't flashy as a director -- he doesn't have a style that is so distinctive that it says, "Hey, look, this is a movie that only James Mangold could make!," in the sense of Taika Waititi with Jojo Rabbit. But Mangold is always focused on what the story needs. He knows what he wants and he knows how to get it. The pacing is wonderful, everything is very clear and it's structured so well. Everything that is in there needs to be in there to advance story or character or usually both, and it's so clean. There's no fat on it, and it never lost my attention or interest.

The Good Liar, which I saw half an hour after this ended, was much shorter but felt much longer because it didn't work at all. It was an interesting contrast because I had expected to like that movie more than the racing movie, and that ended up not being the case at all. It wasn't even close.

I was also glad I saw it in the premium Cinemark XD format. I ended up with that showtime because it worked out the best for a double feature with The Good Liar, and not because I had necessarily intended to pay a premium upcharge for this movie if I had been seeing it on its own. But it looked great and sounded great and I ended up being very glad that I saw it on the biggest screen with a sensational sound system, which definitely enhanced my experience with it for sure.

Unfortunately, my screening (with a listed starting time of noon and an actual starting time of probably about 12:25 or so thanks to all the trailers plus assorted junk) was very sparsely attended. There might have been 20 people there, generously, and people went in and out multiple times and no one seemed to be as enthusiastically "into" the film as I was. Of course, Ford v. Ferrari is also playing on two regular screens at my multiplex besides the XD screen, so it's possible that more people were seeing it in those auditoriums and opting not to pay the upcharge. But I was surprised at how empty it was, especially given that it was the #1 film for the weekend. Eighth place dud The Good Liar (albeit only showing on one screen instead of three) was much more crowded, at least at my theater comparing my screening times. Go figure.

 

[DP 70]

This was a great film and it has a fantastic Dolby Atmos mix.