{"id":11616,"date":"2020-07-18T18:35:42","date_gmt":"2020-07-18T22:35:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/?p=11616"},"modified":"2025-10-12T17:42:16","modified_gmt":"2025-10-12T21:42:16","slug":"ford-v-ferrari-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/?p=11616","title":{"rendered":"Ford v Ferrari-2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ford v Ferrari-2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Director James Mangold<\/strong><\/p>\n

Starring Matt Damon, Christian Bale<\/strong><\/p>\n

Scott’s Review #1,041<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Reviewed July 18, 2020<\/p>\n

Grade: B-<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ford v Ferrari (2019) is a film based on a real-life situation in the world of race car driving featuring two of Hollywood’s most recognizable leading men, Matt Damon and Christian Bale.<\/p>\n

Co-leads share equal screen time and independent storylines that merge nicely. Bale gives the best performance and is the best part of an otherwise mediocre film.<\/p>\n

The rest is quite formulaic and traditional in plot and filmmaking sensibilities.<\/p>\n

Receiving several Academy Award nominations, I expected more from the experience. Granted, car racing isn’t the subject I’m most intrigued by.<\/p>\n

Carroll Shelby (Damon) is an American car designer and entrepreneur, who the Ford Motor Company hires to build a car that will beat the Italian-owned Ferrari after a feud erupts between the two owners.<\/p>\n

Shelby is tasked with building the car to debut at the upcoming 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans car race in France.<\/p>\n

The rebellious race car driver, Ken Miles (Bale), who has no fear, is chosen to drive the new car. He and his wife have money troubles and need the payday.<\/p>\n

Director James Mangold certainly adds his share of pomp and circumstance, making this a testosterone-fueled guy’s film. Traditional styles ensue as the climactic race fills the last act of the way-too-long production.<\/p>\n

There is a story of loyalty and brotherhood between Carroll and Ken that feels forced and dated.<\/p>\n

Ford v Ferrari is formulaic to a tee, with a clear modus operandi of providing entertainment and action.<\/p>\n

The pieces are all in play. The Ford corporation is pissed at being tricked into a deal by a foreign country (Italy). They vow revenge with a big, American car that can defeat the foreign vehicle. There is a climactic finish, with the American car emerging as the clear victor.<\/p>\n

However, first, there are hurdles to overcome to increase the tension and drama. Ken’s driver door malfunctions, causing him to have to gain laps to catch up to Ferrari.<\/p>\n

Ford is written as the underdog, which is a tough sell.<\/p>\n

Since the real-life events took place during the Cold War, Mangold spins a definitive Americana, good old boys’ creation that feels too patriotic to be genuine.<\/p>\n

Many other films share a similar vibe, such as Apollo 13 (1995), The Martian (2015), and especially Rush (2013), which is similarly themed.<\/p>\n

The Ford guys, though cagey and gruff, are meant to be the characters the audience roots for, and the Italian characters are not.<\/p>\n

And is there a need to still show the cliched scene of a dedicated wife obediently watching television at home and cheering on her husband as he races?<\/p>\n

The gripes are not to say the film is a bad experience- it’s not. It’s just that it’s on par with good Mexican takeout from your favorite restaurant.<\/p>\n

You know precisely what you are going to get, and there is some comfort and satisfaction in that. Ford v Ferrari is an easy watch, and one can sink into their sofa and enjoy the revving engines, squealing tires, and smoking mufflers.<\/p>\n

The film is machismo at its finest. Think of a better version of The Fast and the Furious (2001-present) franchise.<\/p>\n

Let’s talk Oscar nominations.<\/p>\n

There is no way Ford v Ferrari should have received a Best Picture nomination. Either Us (2019), Hustlers (2019), or A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019) could have deservedly taken its spot.<\/p>\n

Warranted are nominations for Film Editing, Sound Editing, and Sound Mixing, for which it won the first two. More realistic is for Christian Bale to have been awarded a Best Supporting Actor nomination, which he did not receive.<\/p>\n

Sometimes the Academy gets it right, sometimes they don’t.<\/p>\n

Being a non-race car enthusiast might have hindered my enjoyment of the film compared to a more passionate viewer.<\/p>\n

For those seeking a standard, rev ’em up, male-driven race car film, kick up your heels and enjoy the ride \u2014you’ll love it. Ford v Ferrari (2019) will only marginally please those seeking a deeper meaning in film or film as an art form.<\/p>\n

The film will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the most mainstream and Hollywood-produced films possible.<\/p>\n

Oscar Nominations: 2\u00a0<\/strong>wins-\u00a0<\/strong>Best<\/span>\u00a0Picture, Best Sound Editing (won)<\/strong>, Best Sound Mixing, Best Film Editing (won)<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ford v Ferrari-2019 Director James Mangold Starring Matt Damon, Christian Bale Scott’s Review #1,041 Reviewed July 18, 2020 Grade: B- Ford v Ferrari (2019) is a film based on a real-life situation in the world of race car driving featuring two of Hollywood’s most recognizable leading men, Matt Damon and Christian Bale. Co-leads share equal … Continue reading Ford v Ferrari-2019<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[382,151,158,8302,3062,192,2086,3170,8283,2022,6951,209,3310],"tags":[383,152,159,8304,3064,193,2091,3176,8287,2028,6953,210,3311],"class_list":["post-11616","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2019-movie-reviews","category-actionfilms","category-bios","category-caitriona-balfe","category-christian-bale","category-dramas","category-james-mangold","category-jon-bernthal","category-josh-lucas","category-matt-damon","category-noah-jupe","category-sports-films","category-tracy-letts","tag-2019-movie-reviews","tag-action-films","tag-biographies","tag-caitriona-balfe","tag-christian-bale","tag-dramas-2","tag-james-mangold","tag-jon-bernthal","tag-josh-lucas","tag-matt-damon","tag-noah-jupe","tag-sports-films","tag-tracy-letts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11616","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11616"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11616\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21512,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11616\/revisions\/21512"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11616"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11616"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11616"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}