Jonah Naplan   August 13, 2023

“Gran Turismo” finds its forever home on the big screen, in massive visual splendor that’s a treat for the eyes. Just as soon as they enter the frame, racecars zoom out. As the film globetrots to different destinations, big, bold lettering comes on screen to let us know of the changed location, and boasts of the drone camerawork that snapshots high above the city skyscrapers without fail. When characters argue, their dialogue snaps, crackles and pops as pretentious know-it-alls flag and fizz against one another. This is, of course, a Neill Blomkamp picture.

The South African-Canadian director has previously dipped his toes into sci-fi cinema, with notable ventures “District 9,” “Elysium,” and “Chappie,” but “Gran Turismo” is a whole ‘nother animal. A sports movie at heart, Blomkamp’s fourth theatrical feature is more or less borrowing from the many cliches of its genre brethren, but even so, it’s a viable racing epic that delivers most of what an audience wants from movies like these, without giving much thought over to plot and characterization. Most of it is well-written and thought-out, and the filmmaking is some of the finest I’ve seen all year, but “Gran Turismo” can’t exactly escape its label of being “Playstation Propaganda”—the recently popular notion of putting a commercial product to film, whether telling the story of its inception or conveying its impact on people young and old.

“Gran Turismo” is not so much a sibling to movies such as “Air,” “Barbie,” “Tetris,” and “BlackBerry,” but it is in the same lineage. Not only did PlayStation produce the film, but nods to the company and the Power of Video Games can be found throughout. It’d be one thing if that’s all the movie was; a winking glance at the audience to promote the game and admire the true story that precedes this narrative, but “Gran Turismo” is often at odds with itself because it tries to infuse a real stakes-driven story amidst the kooky, commercial concept with mixed results.

Jann Mardenborough (Archie Madekwe) is a British young man who loves and spends most of his time honing his skills in the racing simulator Gran Turismo. His father (Djimon Hounsou) is hard on him, providing near constant criticism about his career choice to eventually become a racer, and Jann’s doting mother (Geri Halliwell) is nudged to agree. Wanting to feel seen, Jann enlists in a GT Academy competition set up by Danny Moore (Orlando Bloom), a Nissan ambassador who wants to beef up his company’s story by putting the spotlight on some rookies. With the help of engineer Jack Salter (David Harbour), Moore will take the best Gran Turismo players in the world and pit them against each other to compete for a spot in a string of races with real, professional athletes.

This is, of course, a physically demanding challenge that Jann’s advisors never fail to remind him of. Harbour’s no-nonsense coach has some of the more quotable zingers in the film, as his wit corroborates the toughness of this cerebral task, and Jann’s opponents on the track know just the right buttons to push to aggravate him. The majority of the film’s appeal comes from the races themselves—all pristinely shot by cinematographer Jacques Jouffret, and edited within an inch of the action by Austyn Daines. The way Blomkamp’s camera zips infinitely into oblivion, as it follows these racecars zooming along on the track poses some of the year’s most exciting scenes.

Jann speeds his way through numerous races throughout the course of the film, but none are as enthralling, nor perversely intoxicating, as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, comparable to a similar riveting sequence from the same race in “Ford v. Ferrari.” This scene, of which most of the film’s third act is comprised, is some of the best cinematic content I’ve seen all year. I’d imagine the scene looks terrific in IMAX showings, but it still looks incredible in a standard theater. The way all of the racing scenes are shot often puts the viewer in a first person perspective. We’re not just observing Jann. We are Jann. And when the rookie (inevitably) wins his races, the victories are equal parts earned and felt.

That to say, it’s unfortunate “Gran Turismo” is such a formulaic narrative, because there’s much potential here for something more innovative. After a certain point, the movie loses the juxtaposition of “gamer to racer,” and Jann becomes less like a real character in a movie and more like an object behind the wheel that we’ve watched and slowly embodied as he confronts his fame, and proves his doubters wrong. And in a film about this Brit’s underdog story, Jann is ironically the least interesting character in the whole movie. Salter steals the most scenes, acting as a placeholder for the next iconic sports movie coach, up there with the Mickey Goldmills and Patches O’Houlihans. He plays well off of Moore whose views oppose his—while Salter is a more analogue man, searching for whoever has the most talent rather than the prettiest face, Moore is a man of business who means well but really just wants to find someone to assume the attractive face of his company.

But whatever Blomkamp posits—whether about fame, privilege, underdogs, or fortitude—can’t find its place in the scuffle. In its most improbable form, “Gran Turismo” is a true story, but so much of it is clearly romanticized for cinema, making side plots feel superfluous. An underdeveloped relationship between Jann and the outgoing Leah (Emelia Hartford) feels especially tacked on, and a late change in tone brings more mood swings than necessary. In a late-eighties, “Top Gun”-y way, Jann also creates rivalries with his opponents, and the eventual victories are met with the same ecstatic energy as Maverick returning to the naval base.

Madekwe is trying really hard here, and communicates the majority of his precociousness, bravery, and determination with ease, so it’s a shame that the script hands him over to generic dialogue and character beats. Sure, you could call much of this extraneous, and argue that “Gran Turismo” is trying to do way too much with way too little. But if anything, its messiness is emblematic of Blomkamp’s ambition. Personal issues and the video game background aside, “Gran Turismo” is a well-made sports picture that is as exciting a blockbuster as any action movie. Call it cheesy, call it ostentatious, but can you drive a racecar?

“Gran Turismo” opens in theaters on August 25th.