Bale is great but the movie is tedious

Rating: 5/10 (5 May 2020)

I read a review of this film in the New Yorker that said the title was unfortunate because it would make people think it was a sports film when it was more than that. The reviewer was wrong. This is a sports movie, with all the sports movie tropes, and it's all been done better.
The film follows car designers Carrol Shelby and race car driver Ken Miles as they work to help Ford create a car that can beat Ferrari's in a big race. This in itself is odd, in that the movie wants you to see the guys working for a corporate behemoth as scrappy underdogs, which is a bit of a stretch.
This is very much a boy movie, by which I mean it's entirely focused on testosterone-fueled competition ranging from international pissing contests to corporate competition to fist fights on the lawn. You could easily call this movie "Mine is Bigger." And much of my problem with the movie was I didn't care whose was bigger.
The best thing in the movie is Bale as Miles. Instead of the typical cocky race driver of other films, Miles comes across as grease-monkey engineer who not only engineers the car but also plans and engineers his entire race. It's a smart, amiable performance that should be in a better movie.
I am perplexed that this movie was nominated for an Oscar against genuinely significant movies like Parasite and Jojo Rabbit. The best I can say of it is that it is less undeserving of the nomination than Joker. I'm also puzzled by all the gushing reviews.
There are some good moments, particularly in the racing scenes, but the film is hugely overlong and everything past the end of the race feels like a needless and maudlin dragging out of something that should have been a zippy 90-minute film.
Not recommended.