FORD V FERRARI gives us everything we want in a sports movie

‘Miracle’ meets ’Field of Dreams’ at 200 mph

There’s a scene in Miracle I’ll never forget. (Either because it’s an effective scene, or because I watched this movie about the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey triumph somewhere between 20 and 200 times per year growing up.) American hockey coach Herb Brooks is walking on the street and passes by the invincible Soviet Union hockey team coming from the other direction, walking in a single file line wearing emotionless expressions and matching red jump suits. The image is intimidating, hostile, and most importantly, it’s antithetical to the freedom and individualism we hold so dear in these United States (‘Merica!).

Let’s just say the imagination doesn’t have to wander far to make the connection between Miracle, an underdog story about how doggone American grit won out against foreign precision, and Ford v Ferrari. Especially just before the climactic race, when the Ford team glances up from their car to see a procession of beautiful, identical, bright red Ferrari sports cars being rolled to the starting line. “If this were a beauty pageant, we just lost,” says driver Ken Miles.

It’s exactly the type of moment we expect from a sports movie. Maybe you’ve forgotten, because there hasn’t been a great one since 2011’s Moneyball…