Engaging Story, Thrilling Racing, Great Acting

Rating: 8/10 (18 November 2019)

Ford is failing as a company and in a last ditch effort to drive sales back up, they decide to expand their racing division. Rather than spending years and untold millions perfecting their own racecars, they decide to buy out Ferrari, but all they get are manipulations and insults, starting the infamous rivalry between Enzo Ferrari and Henry Ford II. In retaliation, Ford enlist the help of Carroll Shelby to build them a car that can blow Ferrari's out of the water. And so was born the GT40. But a racecar is only half of it, they need a driver too, and Shelby's choice in Ken Miles is too hard a sell for the Ford executives.
So which suits better, Ford v Ferrari or Le Mans '66? Honestly there isn't much of a movie without either. The Ford/Ferrari rivalry is what drives the first half of the movie, while preparation for Le Mans is what drives the second half. Throughout it's more of a Ken Miles biopic. I guess "Ken Miles: The True Story" wouldn't have sold many tickets though. And while Carroll Shelby does appear a lot, he's not explored as a character anywhere near as deeply as Ken Miles is. We don't learn anything about his home life, we don't get to see him wrestle with his demons, and the film's coda almost entirely revolves around Miles' affect on everyone around him.
Ken Miles is the star of the movie, there's no doubt about that, and Christian Bale is unsurprisingly great in the role, slipping in like a chameleon, like he does with every character he plays. He's a down-on-his-luck auto-mechanic who can't even pay the bills, and despite his good connections in Shelby and his unmatched skill as a racing driver, his quick temper and difficulty to work with keeps him rooted in the amateur circuit. That is, of course, until Shelby gets the offer from Ford to give them the Le Mans win. It takes one failed year at the race for Shelby to convince the higher-ups at Ford that they need an expert driver who has hands-on experience with the GT40 in building and testing to really get them the win.
Acting is fairly top-notch across the board, and it's hard to say Bale stole the show when almost everyone else keeps up so well. Matt Damon offers no surprises as Shelby, with his strongest scenes at the very end. Jon Bernthal gets a little shafted in the second half as Lee Iacocca, but he gets plenty of time to shine before then, particularly in the negotiations with Ferrari. Josh Lucas is deliciously punchable as Leo Beebe, the Ford suit put in charge of the racing division, who is portrayed here as having no clue about racing, is constantly against Ken Miles' involvement, and even costs him the win at the end in the name of a photo opportunity. Caitriona Balfe is great as Miles' wife, who takes no crap from her husband, and supports him wherever she can. Tracy Letts is also pretty good as the no-nonsense, stoic Henry Ford II, with his stand-out scene being in a GT40 prototype crying his eyes out. At first you think it's due to pure fear of the speeds he's experienced, but then you realise they're happy tears having restored faith in his racing project, and then they evolve again into sadness and regret that his father, Henry Ford senior, was no longer alive to experience such a pinnacle achievement in automotive machinery. It becomes a surprisingly emotive scene purely thanks to Letts' performance.
Le Mans '66 also has merits in the technical department. It's like crack to a driving junkie, particularly anyone with even a passing interest in 60s sportscars or the racing scene. I've always had a passing interest in cars thanks to my mum and dad both being rally drivers in their younger years, so Le Mans '66 definitely struck a chord with me. The roar of the engines is palpable and infectious, and seeing all sorts of snazzy classic cars driving around was a delight. As I understand it a lot of the GT40s, Shelbys, and Ferraris, including 330 P3 and 275 GTB used in the movie were real, only employing CGI and dummies for crashes, giving the whole experience a feeling of authenticity.
The only criticism I particularly have revolves around the film's coda, showing Ken Miles' death and the effect it had on some of the characters. It felt unnecessary and meant the film ended on a considerable downer. It would be like if Bohemian Rhapsody followed up the LiveAid performance with Freddie Mercury's death and the various members of Queen reacting to it. The ending of the Le Mans race was enough of a downer for Ken, having the victory stolen from him thanks to a technicality in a publicity stunt, and then the next scene they kill him off on a test track in front of his son. Sure, he died doing what he loved, but it felt like a bit too much of a one-two punch. Ending it just after the race as he graciously accepts second place would have sufficed. This is really more of a niggle and personal taste more than anything though. It might work for you.
In all Le Mans '66 was an enjoyable cinema experience. It hit all the right notes for a casual car fan in myself, and I'm sure it'll hit them all for fanatics who lived through it like my parents. But for those without any interest in cars, there's still plenty here for you. The acting is fantastic, the story never lags, and the race sequences are thrilling from beginning to end. I give Le Mans '66 a solid 8/10.