Movie Review | ‘Ferrari’

Ferrari, the latest fact-based film to hit the big screen, is a high-performing vehicle that still manages to drag a bit, despite the fact that it’s fueled by director Michael Mann’s clear passion for the material (his interest reportedly goes back to his film school days), and excellent performances by Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari and in particular, Penélope Cruz as his wife, Laura Ferrari.

The drama is set in 1957 and centers around the racing legend and his complicated personal life. While publicly he lives with Laura, his legal wife and the mother of a son, Dino, who has died, as well as his mother, Adalgisa (the excellent Daniela Piperno), he also lives in another part of town with his longtime live-in lover, Lina Lardi (Shailene Woodley, playing a character who is much younger than the aged-up, white-haired Driver), with whom he has fathered another son, Piero (Giuseppe Festinese), that Laura doesn’t know about. 

The angry, complicated relationship between the Ferraris kicks into high gear when an already heartbroken Laura finds out about the son. The passionate chemistry between Driver and Cruz makes their scenes crackle with life; unfortunately, the other part of the story — about Ferrari’s business woes coming to a head at about the same time in his life — could use a bit more fuel. 

As bankruptcy stalks the company, Ferrari decides to counter his losses by rolling the dice on one race, investing in five different drivers and cars to do a thousand-mile race across Italy for the iconic Mille Miglia. This sounds like it should be much more exciting than it actually is onscreen. While the scenery is indeed beautiful, and some of the drivers’ plots are affecting — in particular the star-crossed lovers Linda Christian and Alfonso de Portago (played by Sarah Gadon and Gabriel Leone) and aging race car driver Piero Taruffi (played by Dr. McDreamy himself, Patrick Dempsey, a real-life race car driver) — the personal and the business stories don’t mesh very seamlessly. 

Plus, I found the personal stories moved more quickly and were much more compelling, which is less than ideal, especially when the setting is the world of race cars. All in all, I found the film worth seeing, but disappointingly not a must view, despite the great cast.  

Ferrari is currently in theaters and streaming on Max. View the trailer here.