Movie Review: 'Gran Turismo'

Gran Turismo (2023)

Directed by Neil Blomkamp

Written by Jason Hall, Zach Baylin

Starring Archie Medekwe, David Harbour, Orlando Bloom, Djimon Hounsou, Geri Halliwell

Release Date August 25th, 2023

Published August 22nd, 2023

There is nothing particularly wrong with Gran Turismo. It's an occasionally rousing, occasionally emotional, sports movie. It's well acted, it's shot well, the special effects are terrific. So why don't I care about this based on a true story melodrama? It's odd, I can remember enjoying Gran Turismo while I watched it and now, as I sit to write about it, most of the movie has slipped away. I'm left with this sort of vague admiration for Gran Turismo but not much beyond that. I'm having to check and recheck notes that I made and go back to the film synopsis for help. Am I just getting old or did this movie just leave that little of an overall impression.

Gran Turismo, according to my notes, stars Archie Medekwe as Gran Turismo videogame star player, Jann Mardenborough. Jann has long dreamed of becoming a race car driver but that particular track of profession is not available to most people. Though the movie only glances in the direction of any kind of social conscience, it's clear that many drivers have had long time ties to family and corporate racing interests. Trying to independently become a race car driver, especially on the European circuit, is beyond merely a pipedream.

The closest that Jann can come is spending most of his waking hours playing the game Gran Turismo, a real life hit videogame series. Created by Kazunori Yamauchi, Gran Turismo is a painstaking recreation of what it is like to race on European race tracks. Yamauchi dedicated years to capturing the cars, the tracks, pit crew experience, everything down to the minute pieces of the car, in order to create a racing simulator so lifelike, it feels like the real thing. I've never played Gran Turismo, I don't play many videogames, nothing against them, but I was really impressed by the glimpses of the game we get in this movie.

While Jann plays almost constantly, someone who recently discovered the game is a Nissan marketing executive named Danny Moore (Orlando Bloom). Struck with inspiration, Danny approaches the Nissan Motorsports division about creating a real life contest based around the Gran Turismo videogame. The grand prize will take the best Gran Turismo players in the world to a real life training facility where they will get behind the wheel of real cars and race on a real track. The winner among the top ten players in the world, will earn the chance to actually compete in a race for Nissan.

As you can imagine, Jann wins. A lot of the movie is dedicated to his journey from gamer, to real life driver to earning the chance to actually race on the European circuit, but there is never any question about it. This is based on a true story and while plenty of Jann's journey is being upcycled for dramatic purposes, a lot of time is spent creating drama around whether or not he will win against his fellow gamers and get the chance to compete in real races. It's strange and the cognitive dissonance of the attempts to craft suspense versus the fact that we are watching a 'true story' unfold never resolves. You just have to accept it.

The emotional core of Gran Turismo is the strength of the film. Djimon Hounsou and David Harbour play two different fathers to Archie Medekwe's Jann. Hounsou is the stern but caring actual father of Jann, Steve Mardenborough and Harbour is his racing dad, his pit crew leader and engineer, Jack Salter. These two father figures, and terrific actors, provide a strong base for the inexperienced young racer and actor. Archie Medewke's best work comes from these obviously generous supporting players who elevate him in each scene they share.

I do like Gran Turismo, I have positive feelings for it. Perhaps its just videogames and sports that I don't care about. I was a racing fan as a kid, I grew up watching early morning broadcasts of F1 Races on ESPN after my friends and I stayed up all night doing the stuff that kids do, it was great to fall asleep to. I don't mean that as an insult to racing, I was a child and it was an early form of comforting ASMR to listen to the roaring engines and the monotones of the professional announcers. I grew out of that phase and began sleeping like a normal person and the early morning races fell away for me.

I cannot stay fixated on Gran Turismo. The subject makes my mind wander. I just don't have much interest in thinking about the game or the racing after I have seen the movie. I think the movie was good. I believe on a technical level and an emotional level, it hit every intended beat. Beyond that, as soon as the movie was over, the memory of Gran Turismo became one that I struggle to bring back. The movie has a beige quality, a monotone quality, that is pleasant but not memorable. I really don't mean to insult the people who made Gran Turismo, if you love this subject, perhaps this movie will be one that stays with you. It's a quality film for the most part. Even if you don't love the subject, the movie is a good way to pass the time that will take up zero space in your memory afterward.

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