A few words first
Alright. We’re officially into the double digits and I must admit, 9 days just brisked like the wind. It feels very satisfying already though. I am gratified that I’m hanging onto the rope and climbing my way up. And it’s worth reminding myself again that I need to look at this at a microscopic level which is why I consider this a milestone. I am getting used to writing daily and it feels very much like a progressive task that is finding space in my daily routine. This feeling has been quite rare in my world of habit building as I lack consistency when I pick up something new.
My writing journey started in 2017 with the initiation of KARSID(a travel site that I maintain with my brother). Before that, I mostly wrote my travel experiences on paper and saw the vulnerability of hard copies which was the reason for the transition. Anyway, my writing on KARSID has been mostly shallow with intermittent bursts on a few occasions. But this was all in aid of writing a 700 words blog(average) once a week. It’s astonishing that I found that task particularly challenging for 3 years.
Now, this project has opened the gateway for me to work on consistency and progress. I am elated by how much I’ve done so far and it still surprises me that I hadn’t started this earlier. Writing daily feels a lot better and is sustaining me to develop my skills alongside. Nowadays, it feels like I’m missing something if I don’t write. So with that mentioned, let’s move onto today’s topic.
Last night, having been recommended by my brother, we watched the 2019 movie called ‘Ford vs Ferrari’ which starred Matt Damon and Christian Bale. Without any hesitation, it has been one of the best films I’ve ever seen. Initially, I was slightly annoyed that it was about cars and had very little interest. By the end of it, the tables turned! I am fascinated by cars, racing, and the story that I ended up researching it all night! It really made a difference.
To sum it up, it had excellent cinematography, screenplay, dialogues(here and there) and acting. And boy it didn’t feel like 2.5 hours.
What’s it about?
The story is based on a famous racing event known as ‘24 hours of Le Mans’ which composes of driving for 24 hours. It’s one of the most popular yet most competitive events. The story places us into the 1960s when Ferrari was virtually dictating the leaderboards with consecutive wins from 1960-65. From there, there’s a shift in focus to the emergence of Ford in the racing world which brings the spotlight onto 2 men – Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles. These men are the highlight of the movie and are fittingly played by Matt Damon and Christian Bale respectively. Whilst I believe that the true events would be a collaborative effort to the uprising of Ford, I do think that these 2 men played a significant role in the emergence of Ford in racing.
So, with an inspirational and comedic theme, the movie seamlessly progresses through many perspectives with the main theme focusing on the competitive spirit between Ford and Ferrari. Ford placed its priorities in defeating Ferrari in the Le Mans ‘66 and most of the plot weaves around that.
I particularly enjoyed a few aspects of the film’s style and presentation…
Gripping
The story is a very inspirational story about Ken Miles and the impact he has had on Ford. I was surprised I never knew about him! He (practically) single-handedly took Ford to victory from 1966-69(despite his distressing demise in 1966). And for Ford, that was the only period that they won ‘Le Mans’. They haven’t won since. For someone who has had such an impactful life, the lens through which they showed Ken Miles was spot on. They presented his character beautifully with care given to each and every aspect. It truly reflects his life and the various events he went through including his war experience, personal life, relationships and professional career. For that matter, Carrol Shelby’s character was also portrayed wonderfully.
I do believe that the film crew took liberty in a few scenes with some comedy and at times unrealistic events. Though, I still admire the care that was given to produce a 150 mins masterpiece.
Due to this level of care, each character had a certain value attached to them which established a very gripping tone to the film. It was interesting right from the get-go.
Race Scenes
It would be tough for me to give you an impression of the race scenes because you simply have to watch the scenes to believe how good they are. When it came to the race scenes, it felt like I strapped on my seatbelt and drove along too. They were shot right up close and created a sense of speed that I’ve never seen before. Despite the fact that the movie is set in ‘66, I got a real sense of the speed with which those monstrous machines were gliding at. It was eye-opening for me.
I was completely baffled throughout the film by imagining how the film crew produced such unbelievable close-up scenes.
Inspirational
I never imagined competition between two rivals to be so inspirational. Yes, you heard that right. The dynamic of the film focused mostly on Ford and Ken Miles(to be specific) and I didn’t think it was going to be an inspirational story at all. But, the movie presented both team aspects as well as the personal story of Ken Miles simultaneously to tick off the motivation aspect too! It was so encouraging to see an old car mechanic turn into a hero. They showed the qualities that Ken Miles posed very seamlessly and interestingly which made me think about Ken’s greatness in achieving something so extraordinary.
There is a lot more I could talk about this film, though I’ll leave that to you. I’ve surfaced over the film aspects but not the race itself. Either I’ll leave that for a different blog(comment below if you’d like me to) or I’ll leave it for you to discover in the movie. The movie, in my opinion, is a must-watch. And trust me, it won’t feel like 150 mins. Enjoy!
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