Entertaining if a bit overly long

Rating: 7/10 (25 November 2019)

"Ford v Ferrari" (2019 release; 152 min.) brings the true story of the showdown at the 24 hrs of LeMans in 1966. As the movie opens, we see Carroll Shelby in a flashback win the 1959 LeMans. We then go forward a few years when Henry Ford II address the Ford factory floor asking for some good new ideas. Up-and-coming executive Lee Iacocca suggests buying the struggling Ferrari car manufacturer but the deal fails. In a parallel story, we get to know rebel driver Ken Miles.... At this point we are less than 15 minutes into the movie but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.
Couple of comments: this is the latest film from director James Mansfield (The Wolverine; Logan). Here he brings to the screen the heated rivalry between two very different giants in the car industry: Ford and Ferrari. The movie starts promisingly, but pretty soon we are bogged down in all kinds of corporate background and infighting that play out for way too long. Honestly, the movie could've been trimmed by 20 to 25 minutes in the movie's first half, and would not have lost any of the movie's essence. Matt Damon en Christian Bale are terrific in the lead roles of Shelby and Miles. The actual racing sequences are entertaining and loud, very loud.
The movie opened wide the previous weekend, too great acclaim and box office success. I saw the movie in its second weekend of play, and the Sunday early evening screening where I saw this at was attended very nicely. Positive word of mouth will likely result in continued strong business in the weeks to come. If you have any interest in car racing, or are simply interested in a well-made and entertaining movie (even if a bit overly long for its own good), I readily suggest you check it out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD or Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.