I believe that for many people, this past weekend is the day when the theater really returns to the theater after it resumes work.
Because of the new films released this week, there are two films that can only really experience their charm on the big screen - "1917" and "Speed King".
But a glance at the daily box office data, while being happy for the former, there is also a little regret for the latter. The shot of "1917" is certainly immersive, but the persistence and blood of "Speed King" are also intoxicating.
Unfortunately, the box office of the latter is only one-fifth of the former.
Today, let's talk about this somewhat snubbed "Speed King".
Many netizens have said that the box office of "Speed King" is cold, and a large part of the pot wants this embarrassing Chinese translated name to memorize.
If you don't look at the introduction and cass of the film, but look at this translated name, it is indeed very much like a pheasant racing film that came out of nowhere, neither revealing the characters nor indicating the events, and colliding with the same racing movie "Fast Wind" in previous years.
Obviously, the translated name of "Speed King" was influenced by "Speed Flow", and the original English name of the film was actually "Ford v Ferrari" - Ford vs Ferrari.
The original English name of "Speed King" is
The Douban score of "Speedy Wind" is as high as 8.8 points, and it has been hailed by many as the best racing movie in history.
The same theme, similar double male protagonist settings, if you don't watch the film, probably many people will take it for granted that "Speed King" is just a follow-up work of "Speed Flow".
Stills from James Hunter (Chris Hemsworth) and Nicky Lauda (Daniel Bruch) / Fast Winds
But this is not the case.
The good thing about "Speedy Wind" is that it portrays two top drivers with very different personalities and values to life, they are lifelong opponents, but they are secretly sympathetic confidants, and James Hunt and Nikki Lauda's finally very different life endings are like a best portrayal of benevolence.
Like "Speed Flow", most of the stories of "Speed King" are real people and real events in history, and only some details have been artistically processed.
Historical prototypes Ken Myers and Carol Shelby
The two protagonists of "Speed King", Ken Myers and Carol Shelby, are also the most famous legendary drivers in the history of racing, but they are not opponents of The Ford and Ferrari teams, but teammates who belong to the Same Ford Team, Miles is responsible for the race, Shelby is responsible for all the logistics of the team, and both are top racing designers.
Carol Shelby (Matt Damon) and Ken Miles (Christian Bell) / Stills from King of speed
Their real opponent was not the Ferrari team shown in the title (although Ferrari was indeed the invincible king of racing at the time), but the owner of the Ford team, the owner of the Ford Motor Company, Henry Ford II.
Henry Ford II (Tracy Letz) / Stills from The Speed King
For much of the film, Miles and Shelby, two of the best players in racing, face the throes of a cascading bureaucracy from Ford.
A group of bureaucrats, led by Henry Ford II and Vice President Leo Babe, like the kind of local tycoons we know best who have money, wielded bills and checkbooks and thought that everyone (especially those who received salaries from them) should be obedient to them.
They believe in "as long as the result, do not look at the process", but ignore the basic fact that there will never be a correct result without the right process.
In the final analysis, the various obstructions and humiliations of Miles and Shelby by Ford executives are laymen's guidance in various fields.
In the case of films, the characters of Miles, Shelby, and Henry Ford II are much like the relationship between the director, producer, and producer (investor) of a film.
The director always has his own ideas and demands, but the investors only emphasize that "I pay everything I decide" and "the final film must be X billion box office", while the producer in the middle has to skillfully mediate between the two, taking care of the investor's temper and considering the director's professional opinion.
Similar relationships and situations, Presumably many people in their own work also deeply experienced, which is also the deep reason why this film will resonate strongly with us.
The shameless thing about ford's top brass is that they both want the championship and want the champion to be disconnected from the real hero Miles. Miles designed a high-performance car, but was disqualified by Ford. He ended up leading all the drivers by a huge margin, but was asked to slow down and wait for the team's two teammates to complete the "spectacle" of three Fords crashing into the line together.
Apparently, this is just a "spectacle" to put gold on Ford's face, and the championship that originally belonged to Miles was officially stripped away.
The film gives a fleeting shot of Miles' car seemingly 0.01 seconds slower at the moment when the three Fords collide together. In short, on the final podium, there was no Miles.
This infamous scandal thus ruined the greatest miracle in the history of racing.
Had it not been for the fact that the winner had been stripped away, Miles would have been the only driver in history to complete the "Grand Slams" of Daytona, Sebring and Le Mans in the same year. This achievement has not yet been completed.
This unusual anti-climactic design is also the most lamentable moment.
Most of the past racing movies, when the protagonist finally overcomes many obstacles and is about to cross the finish line, is the highest light moment in the whole film, but Miles is about to hit the line, but it is a slightly lonely loneliness.
He eventually chose to slow down for Shelby, and for him, he enjoyed the car itself rather than the moment he won the trophy.
At this point in the end of the film, another point of lamentation is the affection of Miles and Shelby from beginning to end. This kind of pity is the special feeling that can only be felt between the top masters in the jianghu.
Like Miles, Carol Shelby used to be a first-class racing driver and racing designer, but unfortunately due to a heart attack, he said goodbye to his driver career early and moved to the team manager behind the scenes.
At the beginning of the film, it is Shelby who invites Miles out of the mountain, and if it were not for Shelby's insight, this legendary story might not have begun at all.
The Ford GT40 car that shines in the film is the result of the collaboration between Shelby and Miles, which helped Ford win four consecutive Le Mans championships from 1966 to 1969, making it a classic in the history of racing.
In the end, Miles and Shelby still completed each other, and the Ford GT40 car became the best proof of their friendship.
Unfortunately, as depicted at the end of the film, Miles died in an accident testing a new car shortly after the 1966 Le Mans race, leaving his regrets never to be remedied.
Director James Mangold made such a film from this perspective, I believe, is to let people understand this tainted history, to understand the legendary pair of Miles and Shelby, to understand the humiliations they have endured and the struggles they have made, so as to understand their achievements and glory.
Back to the original title of the movie , Ford vs Ferrari.
In 1966, thanks to Miles and Shelby, Ford did eventually beat ferrari, but in motorsport, Ferrari was a well-deserved king for a long time, and Ford was only short-lived.
Because Ferrari is the team that respects the rules and spirit of racing more, and Ford is just a businessman who wants to make a name for himself by using racing.
Just like in the movie, when Ford and Ferrari are in full swing, Henry Ford II will take a helicopter halfway through, and Enzo Ferrari will nod to the dominant Miles in the stands.
The comparison between the two, which is higher and which is lower, is actually self-evident.