If you watch Ferrari expecting a racing movie about how this bigger-than-life brand started, I have bad news for you. This movie doesn’t cover that it only focuses on one specific period (the summer of 1957), and by then, the Ferrari was a known brand, but it struggled. Also, Ferrari doesn’t cover many races either; only about 30% of the runtime is racing. This movie is mainly a biopic about one particular summer when everything seemed to come crashing down, professionally and personally, for one Enzo Ferrari.

Luckily, I didn’t expect this to be mainly a racing movie; that’s why this movie worked for me a bit more than it seemed to work for others (based on early reactions). The main driving force (pun intended) behind this movie is the titular duo Adam Driver and Penélope Cruz. I know many (myself included) have horrible flashbacks when they see the name Adam Driver in an Italian setting, as, unfortunately, the memory of House of Gucci (2021, my review here) is still pretty fresh. But what happened in that movie wasn’t his fault, although nobody came out well in that film. But Ferrari is Driver’s redemption; he grounds this titan and portrays him as what he ultimately was, a human whose name is now synonymous with luxurious cars. His performance was great; he made us understand what makes Enzo tick, and it shows him as a human with flaws.

But it was Penélope Cruz who almost stole this movie for me. What she can do with just her eyes is phenomenal, and she continues to prove every year why she is currently in the TOP five living actresses. Her first scene with the phone, gun and her waiting for Enzo, followed up by the conversation they have, gave me every single information I needed to understand that she was not “just a wife”; she was his equal, business partner, and a force to be reckoned with. And then we get the cemetery scene, as both visit their son’s grave (not a spoiler, as it happens within the first 15 minutes) even though they purposefully don’t go together and effectively “swap”. Whilst Adam Driver has about a four-minute scene showing emotional range, Penélope has one take that lasts approximately 30 seconds with no cuts, no dialogue, just a close-up of her face looking at her late son’s gravestone and in those 30 seconds, we see several different emotions. We see her pain, remorse, guilt and anger, and again, with no dialogue, just a close-up of Penélope ‘s face informs you about everything you need to know about her. That moment was when I knew what movie I was in for.

The rest of the movie covers this period of Ferrari financially struggling whilst prepping for a big race they need to win so they can potentially merge/raise money. At the same time, Enzo is dealing with his mistress (played by Shailene Woodley), with whom he has an illegitimate child. We quickly learn that “everyone but Laura (Penélope’s character) knows about him”, so it’s only a matter of time. This part of the film was when I was the most intrigued, not knowing anything about this history; I went on this ride with them and didn’t even mind that the movie didn’t have that much racing going on.

When the racing finally happens, it’s shot beautifully, as one would expect from a legend like Michael Mann. He shoots everything with precision; this movie is technically brilliant and fun to watch, even though, on occasion, I got lost when the big race was happening as to who was who and which car was which. What didn’t help was that Maserati (Ferrari’s main competitor in this film) also had red cars, so in some quick scenes, I had to focus to understand what just happened. But that doesn’t take away anything from the camera work and sound mix/design. This movie shines on a cinema screen and sounds beautiful.

Also, there is one more thing this movie deals with (and I thought well), but I won’t spoil that. If you are a petrolhead, you probably know; if not, don’t Google anything and go to this movie blind. Mann shoots the racing scene masterfully; you are at the edge of your seat every second, as danger is looming everywhere; even Enzo mentions how that week is the anniversary of when two of his friends died racing. But when that scene came, it was still brutal to watch. It was cold, quick and shot in this almost anti-cinematic way. It was almost as if Mann wanted us to feel like we were no longer in a movie and were just watching a live race from 1957.

The other tiny thing I will say about Ferrari is that occasionally, there were some pacing issues. I read after this movie finished that this was Mann’s dream project for over 20 years, and it shows because, on the one hand, he managed to transport us into Italy in the late 50s. On the other hand, some scenes went on a bit too long (the middle part of the film felt a bit dull at times). Again, I wasn’t expecting a full-on racing movie, and I am glad we didn’t get it, as Ferrari was great. Did it have to be 130 minutes? I think not. If you cut a scene here and there, mainly in the middle part of this film, this movie would have flown much better.

Overall, Ferrari is a great biopic which stands out due to its main duo. Adam Driver is great, Penélope is phenomenal, and I hope they both get some recognition for it. The movie was a good mix of racing and biopic that has at least one scene that will leave you speechless. Also, I appreciate movies where we see people whose last names no longer sound like last names because we know them as brands. Ferrari deserves to be seen on the big screen for you to truly enjoy the camera work and sound design, as both were excellent. I don’t think you would regret paying to watch this movie in the cinema.

That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!

Until next time,

Luke