Set during the summer of 1957. Ex-racecar driver, Enzo Ferrari (Adam Driver), is in crisis. Bankruptcy stalks the company he and his wife Laura (Penelope 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. So, with this and his bitter fights with his wife over the guilt of losing their son, and Ferrari's subsequent mistress, Lina Lardi (Shailene Woodley),which his wife knew of, but was still a strain, and his looming bankruptcy woes, Ferrari's life becomes in a constant turmoil.
Others to round out the cast are Sarah Gadon as Linda Christian, Jack O'Connell as Peter Collins, Patrick Dempsey as Piero Taruffi, Michele Savoia as Carlo Chiti, Erik Haugen as Edmund Nelson, Giuseppe Attanasio as Romolo Tavoni and Lino Musella as Sergio Scaglietti.
This was directed with sheer intensity while also being poignant by veteran Michael Mann ("The Jericho Mile" (TV movie) '79, "Thief" '81, "The Keep"'83, "Manhunter" '86,"L.A. Takedown" (TV movie) '89, "The Last of the Mohicans" '92, "Heat" '95, "The Insider" '99, "Ali" '01, "Collateral" '04, "Miami Vice" '06, "Public Enemies" '09,"Blackhat" '15) plus TV and shorts. Certainly, it isn't a tough stretch to realize this was directed by Mann, considering his massive resume of action, yet intensely dramatic films as this film is. His ability to encourage his actors to emit just the correct amount of emotions in the different scenes is amazing. I really had to keep looking at Driver's eyes to realize that I was actually watching the actor. The makeup, hair and tonality in his speech is something to behold, but considering the incomparable dialect coach being his coach, Tim Monich along with Cruz also, it's no surprise. He is one of the best dialect coaches in the biz. It was equally well written by Troy Kennedy Martin ("Incident at Echo Six" (TV movie) '58, "The Italian Job" '69, "Kelly's Heroes" "70, "The Jerusalem File" '72, "Sweeney 2" '78, "Red Heat" '88, "Bravo Two Zero" (TV movie) '99, "Red Dust" '04) plus TV and a video game. The amazing aspect of this writer is that he has been prolific for 60 plus years! So, it's amazing he was even able to write, not just another screenplay, but one with quite the substance. It keep one's attention, all the while letting us into the complexities of the Ferrari family. The only negative about this is that it was just a bit long-in-the-tooth and it would've been great to see more racing sequences. But, his intention was most likely to dwell more on the issues of the family and all the problems--both emotionally and financially. The racing scenes that were displayed were intense even though they were limited. The editing by Pietro Scalia ace, was awesome in that the quick cutting that took place when the racer was shifting gears, and Scalia showed a cut from the shift gear to the gauge and back with rapid speed. This simply showcased the frenzy of the scene. He should see a nomination come Oscar time, along with Mann, Driver and Cruz.
If you like the director, Man, and more to the point, racing films in general, you'll like this. With this film you'll see it all: fine acting by both Driver and Cruz, directing, and editing. It will certainly rev you up--pun intended.
Out of 4 Stars: 3.5 Rated: R 130mins.
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