Of all the year-end movies, I am probably most looking forward to Ferrari. I love Michael Mann, I have missed him, and am glad he’s back with a film about cars, sex, desire, competition, and death. 

 

The latest trailer for Ferrari is all about Enzo Ferrari as played by Adam Driver, a fiercely competitive, driven asshole who made a lot of people miserable, including himself, while building an automotive empire. I love the look of it, but then, I am a huge Mann fan/apologist. I even think Blackhat is redeemable (especially the director’s cut).

What interests me most about Ferrari, though, beyond seeing the film itself, is that Adam Driver is getting no heat for his performance in the Best Actor race. All the acting categories are shaping up to be competitive this year, which has not really been the case for the last several years where one category is usually more competitive than the others, but it is curious that Driver has NO momentum right now. Penelope Cruz has some in the Supporting Actress race, but as much as the trailers have, so far, centered on Enzo being torn between his company, his family, and the two women in his life, Driver is not a factor in the Best Actor race. 

 

In fact, the film itself isn’t really a factor in early predictions. It’s not clocking in the Best Picture or Best Director races, either. This is curious! Michael Mann is widely regarded as a master filmmaker, he’s been away from his craft for a while, he’s back with a flashy biopic starring some of the most admired actors working right now, and it’s like no one cares. Neon, the film’s distributor, doesn’t have the funds of, say an Apple or a Netflix or a Warner Bros. Discovery, so maybe it’s a resources game and they’ll push harder closer to the meat of awards season in the new year (Ferrari doesn’t come out till Christmas). 

 

I just find it a little bit odd that Michael Mann’s comeback film, starring Adam Driver, which got solid reviews out of Venice, isn’t creating more momentum. What gives?