Ford v Ferrari (Le Mans ’66)
A high-speed biographical drama that pits an underdog team of American automotive engineers against Ferrari in the 1966 ‘24 Hours of Le Mans’ endurance race.
Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles commandeered the resources of the mighty Ford Motor Company in the 1960s to go head-to-head with the gods of Italian auto racing. Shelby wins France’s prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 1959, a rare feat for an American. But a weak heart valve stops his career cold, pushing him out of the driver’s seat. Miles is terrible at running an auto shop but he’s a brilliant driver. When Lee Iacocca comes looking to burnish Ford’s family brand with some fast-car sizzle, Shelby and Miles stand as the perfect team to build and race a true competitor to Enzo Ferrari.
Mangold marshals the combined talents of his cast and craftspeople to deliver a dazzling rush of entertainment. Director of photography Phedon Papamichael finds new ways to shoot the race scenes to convey their speed and lethal danger. But as the film rockets to its nail-biting conclusion, it’s the pure drama of people trying to be the very best that wins the day. (source: www.tiff.net)