STX International

THREE WEEKS ago, one of the most anticipated trailers of the summer dropped: Ferrari, the Michael Mann-directed biopic of Enzo Ferrari, starring Adam Driver, Penélope Cruz and Shailene Woodley. And let’s be honest here, in true Mann form, from what we can tell, the film is soaked in D-R-A-M-A. It’s highly stylised, a little over the top and well, it’s basically, House of Gucci with racing cars. The film check off all the Italian storytelling clichés: glamour, well-cut suits, risk-taking, ruthless undercutting of the competition, financial woes and of course, a mistress and lovechild. Plus, it’s deliciously rich in myth, passion and octane, all things necessary when talking about Ferrari.

The film, which Mann has stated is “not a racing movie”—though from everything we can tell, is very much a racing movie—is centred around the moment in time where the racing pioneer and Prancing Horse founder, played by a brooding and aged-up Driver, is facing bankruptcy and prepares to enter the Mille Miglia, a famously gruelling 1,618km open-road endurance race that winds through townships of regional Italy. The trailer itself is gripping, at least until we get to the (very important) scenes which left internet keyboard warriors and film critics alike cocking their head: the over the top (figuratively and literally) CGI car crashes.

We learned this week, that if anyone has any questions or critiques about said crash scenes, Adam Driver does not want to hear it. At the EnergaCamerimage Film Festival in Poland one audience member found this out the hard way, when they asked the Academy Award-nominated actor, “What do you think about [the] crash scenes? They looked pretty harsh, drastic, and, I must say, cheesy for me. What do you think?”

Driver’s reply? “Fuck you, I don’t know?”

The actor, also an executive producer, has since gone viral for his retort. But in his defence, this is a very Enzo Ferrari response. The motorsport pioneer was never celebrated for his pleasantries, nor was he ever praised for his ability to suffer fools. So maybe this is a little hint that there is hope for this film, after all?

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