Ferrari- the Movie

I just finished watching "Ferrari" for the second time. And for me it was even better than the first. Though I have to correct myself...there had to be one time that CGI was used and that would be in the scene at the end of the Mille Miglia when Portego's car goes into the spectators. But I defer to the article above for all the rest of the car scenes. The acting is really deserving of awards for Driver and Cruz...their pain starts deep inside them and slowly rises to the surface. Cruz's final scene where she a Enzo negotiate the future of the man and the company is a standout. Driver's grasp of Ferrari the man, is perfect...his love of racing and the cars he builds and the men who in them, is always believable and never over the top. Same with his love for the two women in his life and his dispair at the pain he causes both them. And credit must certainly go to Michael Mann's directing. He never tries to show off...his choices are always in service of the picture. He captures both the Italian landscape, and the culture. And the screenplay by Troy Kennedy Martin can't be allowed to go with its own deserved praise. His dialog crackles with both emotion and intelligence. However in the end, it is Mann's fingerprints that are all over the film. I worked wit him once, very briefly, and his attention to every detail in the process was very impressive. I urge those who haven't see "Ferrari" to put aside all expections, the judgement of others, even your awareness of the subject matter. Just let the movie come to you as a stranger.

 

We may want to be careful not to give away too much of the film out of respect for people who have not seen it yet.

 

Yes, thanks, Joe. I’m aware of that. I should have also said that the reason I made the comparison with Napoleon and Maestro (Leonard Bernstein) is that they have a lot in common: all three are current releases, are about men who utterly dominated their fields, filmed by prominent* directors and, critically, all three chose to elevate the women in those men’s lives to more prominent positions in the films than they actually played in life, each of whom was very important in her own right.

I’ve read several reviews of each film and the consensus seems to be that of the three, Ferrari has received the best reviews with the other two far behind. All are flawed but Napoleon and Bernstein fatally so, unfortunately. Those two have in common that the lead actors apparently “interpreted” their roles as they saw fit, thus creating their own Bernstein and Bonaparte….and not very well. Fortunately and to their great credit, Mann and Driver apparently deliberately avoided that nonsense in the portrayal of Enzo Ferrari and the characters in his orbit.

*Bradley Cooper directed Maestro and while this was only his second directorial, he is a known name.

 

You've got a lot of people to argue with regarding 'fidelity to the facts'; nearly all the period dramas about historical events that have ever been made take liberties with the truth. Nearly all. And there are hundreds; I fall asleep to one many Saturday nights.
Apologies for excluding the other movies; I haven't heard of them.

 

Now you bring John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart into this

 

A great auction on BaT this morning...this would have been a wonderful addition to the cast of "Ferrari."

Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta SWB Re-Creation by Stefano Allegretti for sale on BaT Auctions - ending December 26 (Lot #131,280) | Bring a Trailer

 

I Saw It yesterday...HUGE Disappointment...Ford Vs Ferrari a much better movie...

 

Does "Ferrari" cover the time period from late 1959 also, which was when the 250 GT SWB Berlinetta was introduced?

 

No, but the period just before. The survival of the company in the time of the movie is what allowed the 250 SWB to eventually be made. The movie covers a specific period in 1957. I was being more lyrical in my comment about the car being in the movie...but they are spiritually connected. And the movie gives a wonderful portrait of the world in which the 250 was born.

 

No. It would have been an anachronism in the film.

 

I loved the film and Adam driver was great, acting as a superstar exactly like Enzo Ferrari was: in my opinion this movie is ten times better than any other car movie, including "Ford vs Ferrari" and "Rush". Piero Ferrari and Brenda Vernor, who both were at the Maranello movie opening on December 7th, appreciated the movie and told very nice words about it.

Ferrari Classiche gave full support to the movie: Ferrari Classiche chairman of the board is Piero Ferrari, who also is -child- one of the main characters in "Ferrari" movie.

First and last scene are filmed at San Cataldo Modena Monumental graveyard, and in my opinion they worth the ticket price them alone


Ciao

 

Another 250 GTE 2+2 destroyed........
And the auction description says: ........"The car does not have a title as it is registered in a country that does not issue titles for vehicles."
What a total nonsense.

Marcel Massini

 

I saw Ferrari yesterday and I was overwhelmed at how good of a Movie it was. If you dont know anything about Enzo Ferrari, then you may be completely disappointed. However, if you are a Ferrari fan and respect Mr. Ferrari, then you will love the movie. It was not much about the cars, but a story of how he managed his life, at one of the most critical times in the Ferrari company's history.

I will say that Michael Mann, did an incredible job of being accurate down to the look and style of the movie, recreation of races, accidents etc.. were almost perfectly portrayed ( some very violent and gruesome ) ... The Portrayal of Laura Garello Ferrari his wife was spot on... perhaps even a bit prettier than in real life... It captured the passion and craziness of her life... and how difficult and problematic she was - and how strong she was behind the scenes. Even His mother's portrayal was very good. Adam Driver - while on first sight did not seem right ... I thought by the end was a Great Enzo Ferrari. I think they could have given him some more padding... but otherwise, he was very good. Wity, charming and ruthless. it also showed his sensitive side for children - and Piero. All of this was documented and translated on screen. To me this ranks right up there with Grand Prix and LeMans. WAY, better than Rush and Ford v. Ferrari. There were a couple of continuity errors that only "Ferraristi" would notice... Like a 250 gte in a parking lot... when that car did not come out until 1960... and a few background cars in workshops... but overall I give it 9 out of 10.

Compared to Napoleon, (of whom I'm a huge fan, and know about as much about the Napoleonic period as I do about Ferrari,) that Movie was horrible. Napoleon was a disaster, that changed history, and ignored reality when it could have been cheaper to do it realistically... where as in Ferrari the minute details were there, and for me makes it all the more special as it shows someone appreciated the subject vs. just grabbing a buck. GO SEE FERRARI!

 

"Ferrari" covers only some 1957 months

PS
The barber shop scene was filmed at the real barber shop in corso Canalgrande 73 in Modena, where Enzo Ferrari went almost every day. The actor doing the barber in the movie is Alessandro d'Elia: he is the son of the real Enzo Ferrari barber - Massimo d'Elia - and still runs the shop at present day.

Ciao

 

One thing I found interesting was the character of Eugenio Castellotti who was played by Marino Franchitti (brother to Dario). Interestingly Marino was hired as a stunt driver for the movie but was eventually cast into a part. So too was Derek Hill (son of Phil Hill) who would play Jean Behra but I digress.

Getting back to Castellotti in real life he was engaged to a very famous Italian actress named Delia Scala and was a few weeks away from marrying her at the time of his death. In the movie Delia Scala's name is replaced with a fictional person named Cecilia Manzini. In real life Castellotti did indeed get a call while with Scala but drove alone (some 4 hours) to the test that would cost his life. Scala famously received news of Castellotti's death moments before a stage performance and went on anyways saying that her grief would last longer than an evening (nobody does drama like the Italians).

I found it interesting that Scala's name was omitted from the film (possibly the family objected) and that it was chosen for her to be present at the test rather than tell the story as it happened (which would have been awesome). Of course this is just a little detail that certainly did not detract from the film but I thought I would share the actual telling of events as I would assume that few would know the full story.

 

Thank you for sharing: I didn't know this detail

Ciao

 

In terms of minor details, I also love the brief scene on the telephone with Gianni Agnelli. Shot in the old Fiat factory, Agnelli was famous for wearing his wristwatch on the outside of his shirt sleeve...also when Ferrari takes the call, the first thing is says is calling Agnelli by the nickname, "L'Avvocato"...which is lawyer or negotiator in Italian. Just another painterly moment that makes the film a constant pleasure to watch.

 

+1 spot-on.

 

I think I've become haunted by this movie..."Ferrari"...and every subtle brush stroke in it. They woke me up at 6 this morning and I lay in bed replaying the movie in my head. My opinion of this movie just grows and grows.The brief scenes with Ferrari's mother speaks volumes of the culture Enzo and his wife were born into. It is the best capturing of an Italian family since The Godfather...and in some ways I think it is even better. Adam Driver's portrayal of Ferrari, for me is every bit the equal of Brando's and DeNiro's work in The Godfather. Coppola had an enormous canvas and a landscape of generations from the novel to work with. Michael Mann captured a real-life character every bit an icon, and he did it in a simple portrait of just a few month's in the Ferrari's life. Ferrari is the more subtle of the two movies, and it proves that sometimes less is more. The women in Godfather are all background...in Ferrari their importance and size is integral to the story.
Ferrari is so much more than just "a car movie." It is one of the most beautiful love stories that I've seen in many years. If the promotion of this film gives more attention to that, they will attract a large female audience.

 

The Two Bucknum sons of Ronnie were drivers in the movie. they work for a Friend of mine Allen Berg.... they told Allen that the movie was filmed at real speed, and it shows.

 

Just saw this movie and liked it a lot. Mostly as a time capsule. They put so many historic things in there, it was awesome (like the Maser and Ferrari transporters). I was amazed at all the old cars they found to fill the street scenes.

Rush is still my #1 movie followed by Ford vs Ferrari. So this takes 3rd, but it is a decent piece.

Can somebody shed some light on the Ferraris and Masers in the film, how many were real vs replicas? Not that I could tell the difference anyhow.

And was that de Portago sliced in half? Pretty gruesome.

 

There's a YouTube video "Ferrari (2023) Behind-the-Scenes All Released Feature" that came out 4 days ago. It's 22:26 long...fyi.

 

Some clarifications right from Piero Ferrari

 

Unfortunately in France not before 2024.. ( on Amazon prime)

 

Wife took me to see "Ferrari" last night. Worth seeing...Cruz best performance....Adam Driver better than my low expectations.....Wife's summary..."All the parts were there for a really good movie but the total missed the mark"