The one thing that Hollywood is really good at is competition which you might find surprising since Hollywood is a far-arsed, monied town and you would think 'competing' wouldn't even enter into their vocabulary, (except, of course, during Awards Season), yet when Hollywood sets its mind to it and makes a film about competing, (think "Rocky", think "Aliens"), they are unbeatable. Their latest competitive movie is "Ford v Ferrari" and it's a contemporary classic in which every single piece fits perfectly into place just like the pieces of the classic cars on display. In this country it's called "Le Mans '66" so even if you didn't know it was about the car companies Ford and Ferrari you would still know what it's about and when it takes place.
Starting off with a superb screenplay from playwright Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth and Jason Keller. terrific performances from the likes of Christian Bale, Matt Damon, Jon Bernthal, Tracy Letts, Josh Lucas and Caitriona Balfe, brilliant editing, luminous photography all under the guiding hand of James Mangold this is a crowd-pleaser of the first magnitude and you don't even have to like cars to enjoy it, (though it helps). What you do have to like, however, is competing and who doesn't get an adrenalin rush from competing? It also helps if you like Christian Bale and Matt Damon. Bale's character may not be the most likable bloke in the world but this faultless actor is terrific in the role while Damon is fast becoming the go to actor of choice when it comes to playing craggy, steel-jawed heroes of a certain age, (surely his Oscar is just around the corner). The ending may be a tad predictable but the journey to it is one hell of a ride.
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