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【Movie】The legendary revenge story of Ford, who was ridiculed for being uncool, taking on the absolute champion Ferrari in "Ford v Ferrari"
In a nutshell
- It's finally here. A revenge story that will go down in automotive history. 1966, the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Ford, the epitome of uncool, takes on the absolute champion, Ferrari.
- In fact, Ferrari was supposed to become a subsidiary of Ford. However, the negotiations broke down just before the signing. Ferrari looked down on Ford, a mass-market car manufacturer.
- The mass-market car manufacturer Ford, having suffered a humiliating experience. Vowing revenge at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where Ferrari had won four consecutive victories at the time, they welcome a legendary duo from the American racing world.
A masterpiece of a revenge story, made into a movie
It's finally here.
A famous revenge story in the automotive world that sends shivers down my spine, made into a movie.
A story of Ford, who carried the weight of humiliation, taking on the absolute champion, Ferrari.
A story of Ford, the epitome of uncool and uncool, recklessly challenging by building a race car.
The movie "Ford v Ferrari" will be released today, January 10, 2020.
This movie, which faithfully reproduces the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a survival race in which only 10 out of 50 cars can finish, with all real cars and no CG, is sure to attract car fans as a racing movie, and its fascinating story is said to have moved both men and women, becoming the No. 1 movie in the U.S. on its opening weekend and receiving high praise on movie review sites. It's been a while since a niche racing movie has received such a good reputation.
Personally, this episode is deeply engraved in my heart, and in honor of Ford, I ride my cross bike, which has the same coloring as the Ford GT, with great care (2013/Cannondale/Quick SL3).
The story follows two classic patterns from the screenwriting book "Save the Cat!" (by Blake Snyder/Film Art) that I introduced in my previous article. It's a revenge story and a buddy movie with two protagonists.
The more background knowledge you have, the more interesting the movie will be. In this article, I would like to introduce some background knowledge to make the movie even more interesting.
When it comes to uncool mass-market cars, it's Ford
Alexander Migl
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The Ferrari 250P LM that had won Le Mans four times in a rowIn 1961, Ford had become a major corporation as a manufacturer of mass-market cars since Henry Ford's mass-produced Model T.
However, because Ford did not make sports cars that were not profitable, the public image was that of a "uncool but cheap mass-market car manufacturer."
Therefore, the president at the time, Henry Ford II, aimed to expand the motor sports division in order to promote sales and improve the image of the sports car "Ford Mustang," which was scheduled to be sold for the first time at that time, and planned to acquire the famous Italian sports car manufacturer, "Scuderia Ferrari."
The negotiations were going well, but just before the end, Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari broke off the deal at the last minute, and the reason he gave was, "I wouldn't sell to an uncool company like Ford."
Henry Ford II, who had a humiliating experience. Vowing revenge on Ferrari, he set his sights on winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where Ferrari had achieved an unprecedented four consecutive victories at the time, and began building a race car.
A series of failures in the Le Mans challenge, seeking help from a big name in the American racing world
Three years after the breakdown of negotiations in 1961.
In 1964, Ford entered three "Ford GT40s" in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, aiming to defeat Ferrari.
However, the result was that all cars retired. That year, Ferrari comfortably achieved its fifth consecutive victory.
The following year, in 1965, they entered five "Ford GT40s," but all cars retired.
Ford, with no way back. Ford, who was not doing well in building race cars and forming a race team, invited Carroll Shelby (played by Matt Damon in this movie), a legendary race driver and racing car designer who had built an era in the American racing world.
Shelby remade the race car for Le Mans in 1966, and together with Ken Miles, a legendary driver of yesteryear and a roughneck with a difficult personality who was Shelby's chief test driver at the time, they proceeded with preparations.
Will the "Ford GT40" he builds be able to defeat Ferrari? I hope you will enjoy the result at the theater (I will be watching it too, today).
