By Daniel Paiz

Gran Turismo is set to release at the end of August, but there was an early release showing tonight, August 2nd at several locations across the US. Cypher Flicks tends to review films more aligned with music, comic book stuff, etc., but this film pulled me in and made me a believer. Full disclosure, I have little to no background knowledge of car racing and haven’t played this game in a really long time.

However, this film is one any casual filmgoer can appreciate because of the storytelling, tension, and underrated musical selections. Learning about Jann Mardenborough and his journey from playing Gran Turismo to pro racing with Nissan is made for the big screen.

Storytelling

Video games have long been considered something that’s a hobby, something not to be taken seriously. But if you pay attention to how society has evolved, the gamification of everything is hard to ignore. Gambling apps, dating profiles, buying groceries—nothing is safe. It is safe to say that skills learned through a simulator translate to real-life applications; even the US military uses simulators to train their soldiers. This story is another example of taking a leap of faith to see what is possible if someone attempts to do it.

Jann (Archie Madekwe) gets doubt from his family and it’s a bit of a motivator, especially when he shows what he can do. Each conversion is a small moment of epiphany: his brother (Daniel Puig) after their late-night fun, his mom (Geri Horner) during the GT academy, and finally his dad (Djimon Hounsou) with Le Mans. That recognition from Jann’s dad, that moment is big; not because of it propelling Jann further, but because there was support flowing both ways between father and son.

The biggest conversion of all is Jann convincing himself that he belongs. Imposter syndrome, not feeling good enough or like you deserve it—whatever you want to label it—believing in yourself is mental fitness of sorts. A person’s biggest critic is often their own mind, and when one internalizes the insecurities of family, friends, and society, it all makes it that much more to work through. When you have a Jack Salter (David Harbour) and a Danny Moore (Orlando Bloom) encouraging you and relying on you, there’s some balance between the doubt and the belief.

Lessons from those who have experienced certain aspects of life are invaluable to those presently experiencing such challenges.

Tension

If you are someone who hasn’t really gotten into different breathing exercises (like me), after this film you too might also want to learn about those. This is not hyperbole: I felt the tension from the main characters in every race, in every turn, and in every photo finish. Racing has all the parallels of other sports where the mental side of the game is nearly the entire battle an athlete has. Our minds are powerful yet squishy things, and how one envisions each decision they make really does determine so much.

Jann has so much reference material from playing the racing simulator, and that seemed to be a calming X-factor of sorts (along with some smooth sounds I won’t spoil here). The grinding he did in the simulator paid absolute dividends against the other racers. It would seem that breaking down the track in such a way has to be an industry standard at this point, much like professional basketball teams having a video staff to break down opposing teams.

The racing scenes make you hold your breath, with a few sighs of relief when something works out. It doesn’t always work out though, and the big miss from Jann is what draws Jann and Jack closer together. There’s also the ongoing disconnect between Jann and his family, and the growing link between Jann and Audrey (Maeve Courtier-Lilley) that seems to give him that needed extra nudge. Audrey’s acceptance of Jann’s passion plays a larger role than viewers realize as the story rolls on.

Final Verdict

Something that also plays a big role despite how subtle it can be is the music selection throughout a film. The jams played at certain moments and the score that emphasizes action will set a mood every time, and this film has so much going for it musically. Hip-Hop, Grime, EDM, some Black Sabbath-era rock, and the usual tracks you hear in most racing games are all present throughout.

There are also the races themselves which are very nail-biting, with video game decision making and real-life crashes. The amount of force these cars put on the human body is kind of wild. It’s no wonder that not everyone is cut out to drive and adds to the stakes throughout the film. There’s one more reason why this film is worth checking out.

Jann Mardenborough is a real person, who really went from the Nissan GT Academy to racing real cars. He was not welcomed into the racing world. He’s still racing today, and the reason why Japan is a recurring location in the film might have more to do with Jann racing there for a number of years (and not the fact that Nissan is based there). Biopics are getting greenlit more and more, and historical figures are grabbing most of the spotlight. When a film about a contemporary person who kept chasing his dreams and ended up achieving them speeds across your screen, it’s worth checking out. Films like this remind audiences what might be, if one digs in and chases after it.