Directed By Michael Mann

Starring – Adam Driver, Penelope Cruz, Shailene Woodley

The Plot – Set during the summer of 1957. Ex-racecar driver, Ferrari (Driver), is in crisis. Bankruptcy stalks the company he and his wife, Laura (Cruz), built from nothing ten years earlier. Their tempestuous marriage struggles with the mourning for one son and the acknowledgement of another. He decides to counter his losses by rolling the dice on one race – 1,000 miles across Italy, the iconic Mille Miglia.

Rated R for some violent content/graphic images, sexual content and adult language.

Ferrari | Official Trailer | Starring Adam Driver and Penélope Cruz (youtube.com)

POSITIVES

It may have taken eight years for Mann to recover from the monumental mishap that was “Blackhat”, but that time has been spent fleshing out one of the most uniquely endearing character studies inside of a biopic that I have seen in quite sometime. Mann directs the hell out of this film, choosing against telling an origins story for Enzo, requiring him to include so much into the storytelling, and instead zeroing in on one year in the life of this iconic revolutionary, who as illustrated was anything but unanimously loved and praised by his peers. Because of such, the script takes ample opportunity sifting through all of the love, work, personal and ethical relationships that surround his unpredictably timultuous lifestyle, in turn vividly illustrating a moral dilemma from within his many selfish choices that effortlessly feed into the flawed protagonist captivity that films often have to work overtime in conjuring. The presentation, like a Ferrari, is sleek, smooth and full of body inside of Erik Messerschmidt’s mesmerizing cinematography, and with the many unique angles that Mann stitches together throughout the surveillancing visuals and methodic edits, remains close to our titular protagonist to illustrate the weight of the world that hangs constantly on his broad shoulders. Set in 1957 Italy, the film’s production values are tremendous, detailing eye-stretching familiarity into the fashions, architecture and of course automobiles of the post-war age, feeding their way into the elegant tastes of our characters with three-dimensional tangibilities that find their way into nearly every single shot of the two hour engagement. The action sequences, while limited in quantity, garner all of the intensity that keep audiences on the edge of their seats, and with the balance of boldly distinguishing sound schemes inside of the production’s mixing, conveys all of the danger factors in velocity that comes with the territory of the sport, simmering until they blow throughout occasionally unforgiving circumstance. This is especially the case with the movie’s climax, which initially plants many seeds that will inevitably grow at some point throughout the sequence, and whether or not you know what happens during the race at Mille Miglia, you simply can’t be prepared for how it’s executed so breathtakingly, bringing to light many moral quandries that pay the price for financial success. It’s also a film blessed remarkably by the merit of performances, primarily with the thunderous duo of Driver and Cruz, who disappear seamlessly into their respective portrayals. Driver’s physical transformations are only surpassed by his commitment to ethos, conjuring a stoic portrayal and consistent Italian accent for Enzo that oozes power and attention-stealing gravitas in every room that he chooses to grace. As for Penelope, her role will be far more memorable, as she’s given all of the gripping dramatic material that makes Laura such a fiery force of nature that devastates everyone she comes into contact with. Considering Enzo has kept so much from her, it’s her character I found myself investing most in, and Cruz takes advantage of this situation with the kind of resiliency that would cripple other women in her predicament, in turn cementing the ideal that behind every great man is an even greater woman.

NEGATIVES

As for weaker elements to “Ferrari”, despite finding a comfortable medium in the structure of its storytelling, choosing to reduce the scope in time for a deeper dive into one distinct period, the script is never able to assemble it in ways that feel very compelling for outsider audiences, who might not be as enamored with the politics and economics of a luxurious car company. Part of the reason for this is certainly in the absence of urgency to the stakes of the conflict, which while established as early as the film’s first act, is never realized impactfully in ways that test and even compromise the characters, but another reason certainly lends itself to the many characters outside of Enzo who are assembled for the cause. Because the film is an ample but limited two hours, it doesn’t have time to capably incorporate all of them in ways that are vital to the integrity of the narrative, and because of such we’re given too much time away from the essential conflict, which grinds much of the pacing during the film’s second act. In addition to this, the musical score meanders the emotionality of scenes that simply don’t require it, with tones that are a bit on the nose and one note than a film like this needs. In my opinion, the film and its many dramatic sequences worked best when embracing the silence that paralyzes and summarizes Enzo and Laura’s situations, and even during racing sequences on the track, I feel like the buzz of the engines was all that was needed to play into the immersive appeal of the sport. Finally, while Driver and Cruz work feverishly to deliver two emotionally complex but especially human portrayals, Woodley’s work as the “other woman” in Enzo’s life points to an even bigger problem of white-washing within Hollywood that unfortunately still permeates in the casting of vital figures. While I don’t have a problem with Woodley as an actress, as I’ve loved her in films like “The Fault In Our Stars” or “The Spectacular Now”, her casting as the Italian-based Lina is completely wrong, as not only is her accent not believable with the consistency of her opposing co-stars, but at times it’s even not existent at all, which constantly broke my concentration in viewing her as the person she’s supposed to portray.

OVERALL
“Ferrari” glides with intense acceleration in producing an against-type character study biopic in the life of Ferrari Automotive founder, Enzo Ferrari. With commanding direction from Michael Mann, as well as a duo of gripping performances from Driver and Cruz, the film never loses steam in any of its unexpected turns, instead popping the clutch towards a cautionary tale where ego and desparation collide with echoing impact.

My Grade: 8/10 or B+