Cars have been featuring in the movies for as long as they have been around. Whether it is a gangster from the days of prohibition on the running boards for a shootout or thrilling and often over the top car chases. Racing is a huge sport with millions of enthusiasts over the planet and there are many movies which have tried to bring the excitement to the big screen. Ayrton Senna, James Hunt and Niki Lauda have all had their time in the movies. Recently the battle for Le Mans domination was shown in Ford vs Ferrari.
These are some of the classic movies and moments from Hollywood and beyond.
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The Italian Job
A classic movie with Michael Caine and a great cast. The movie was remade with Mark Wahlberg later on but watch the original if you haven’t seen either. The movie is about a gold heist and based in England and Italy where our ‘heroes’ face the wrath of the Mafia but the cars and subsequent chases are competing with the actors for screen time. Jaguar E-types, a Lamborghini Miura and an Aston Martin DB4 feature in the movie but it is the Mini Coopers racing through Turin, down steps and through sewer pipes that the film is famous for.
Le Mans
Steve McQueen could feature in more than one movie on this list but this one is about one of the toughest races there is. a 24 hour test of endurance for both the driver and his crew plus the machine itself. McQueen plays a driver who is wracked with guilt over the death of his best friend in an accident he caused but at the same time he is fighting to win Le Mans against his rival. Excellent camera work and visuals make this a great car movie.
Rush
A very good film showing the intense rivalry between two drivers. It shows the incredible bravery of Niki Lauda who returned to Formula 1 just weeks after nearly dying in an accident. The film displays the differences between the two men with one who appears to love the playboy lifestyle and all the glamour of being a famous driver and the other with a professional intensity and brilliance of the Austrian.
Realistic filming and a gripping tale mean any F1 fan would want to watch but even if you’re not a big racing fan this is still a great human story.
Ford vs Ferrari
A tale about the rivalry between the two motor powerhouses. The film depicts Ford trying to join forces with Ferrari in an ill fated deal that apparently results in Ferrari insulting Ford and causing the latter to funnel funds into making a car capable of winning Le Mans and ending Ferrari’s dominance.
Although there are a lot of embellished scenes and parts that have been said to be factually incorrect it is still a good sports car movie and shows Ken Miles towards the end of his life and his determination to win. Matt Damon and Christian Bale play Shelby and Miles.
Casino Royale
While we concede this isn’t a car movie it does as usual feature James Bond with one of his favourite car manufacturers. The Aston Martin. In this movie he has an Aston Martin DBS V12. It’s a high performance vehicle with a 6 litre 48 valve V12 engine which James Bond uses in an exciting car chase during the movie. Due to its low centre of gravity a ramp had to be implemented while filming a stunt. The driver used an air cannon to push the car into a roll at the moment of impact. The car was travelling at over 70mph and rotated seven times on camera. This was subsequently confirmed as a new world record by the Guinness Book of Records.
If you want to visit a casino and pretend to be James Bond you don’t have to be involved with car chases. With the growth of the gambling industry casinos are easily accessible. In fact you don’t even need to physically visit one. There are so many online casinó to choose from. Search the internet for casino websites or online gambling and you will find one that suits you. You can then register and start playing Baccarat which is said to be Bond’s favourite game although he is seen playing roulette and poker in other movies. One feature of online casinos is you can play for free and try out different games until you get one you like. Perhaps you prefer craps or slots. You can even find live casinos online where they have a real, professional dealer running the game. The camera follows the cards or the dice and there is a much more human level to playing remotely from home. Or perhaps you just want to play Online Slots.
Senna
For many people Ayrton Senna was the greatest racing driver ever. He was incredibly competitive and massively gifted. Senna won the World Championship for Formula 1 three times and took more pole positions than any other driver in history. He was worshipped across the world and a national hero in his native Brazil.
His life came to a tragic end way too soon in 1994. This documentary shows interviews with the great man and race footage from his career. The film is pieced together to show the best of Senna and as such it misses out some of his less than perfect aspects of his personality but it isn;t meant to be a warts and all film. It is produced to show you just how talented Senna was on the race track. Aggressive yes but a genius behind the wheel too.
The Love Bug series
Just enough room here to include this light hearted set of movies for younger viewers. Herbie is a VW Beetle with his own personality and driven by race driver Jim Douglas (played by Dean Jones). The films are a bit cheesy but feature comedic moments and plenty of driving including a road race in Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo. If your youngsters prefer something a bit more modern than Cars by Pixar could ignite some interest in sports car racing.
