Gran Turismo is the next PlayStation IP to be adapted to the big screen. Their first attempt with Uncharted wasn’t good but The Last of Us TV series was great. I was already interested in the idea of this movie but was further interested because of the director, Neill Blomkamp. He has not made anything as good as his first movie, District 9. Has Neill managed to return to form or is this another forgettable entry from him?
Firstly, David Harbour is terrific in this movie as Jack Salter. He plays the old tough mentor to the main character and he plays it so well. David just delivers those powerful speeches with such weariness and charm. Orlando Bloom is also great in this film as the marketing executive at Nissan. Orlando gives a charismatic yet slight sliminess to his performance that is so fitting for a person in marketing. Djimon Hounsou is wonderful in the role of the Dad. He is playing a Dad who is disappointed in his son for just playing video games. A character like that would be very disliked by the audience but Djimon manages to make him very loving despite that. Djimon delivers the most emotional performance in this whole film despite his minimal screen time. Archie Madekwe plays the main character, Jann Mardenborough, and he does a good job. His performance is tame compared to the others and he is outshined. Still, his performance makes him feel more relatable which is a perfect fit for a gamer character.
It’s a solid telling of an underdog story. It has all the tropes you would expect: an underdog given a 1 million chance to make it, a grouchy mentor who warms up to the main character, the early success, the big setback in the later parts etc. However, it tells the story well and with a lot of heart. The dramatic and emotional moments still hit hard. A big core of this movie is the father and son dynamic between Jack and Jann. Seeing the relationship between the characters grow and the moments where Jack pushes Jann are superb. This is thanks to the great chemistry between David and Archie. The race scenes are also magnificent thanks to the great direction of Neill. He uses video game overlays to help the audience keep track of what place Jann is in a race. He also cuts away to the engine or the front seat to put the audience in the seat of the car. The climactic race is incredibly engaging and Neill does a great job in delivering a great conclusion.
However, due to the fact it is telling a story you have seen a dozen over, nothing in the plot surprises you. There isn’t any moment of subversion or surprises, which could be a bit disappointing. There are some problems in the story though. There is a love interest and romance element in this movie with a character called Audrey, whom Jann is in love with. The romance is not fleshed out at all with no exploration of Audrey’s character. She doesn’t even do anything in the story that is meaningful whatsoever. She is just there for the main character to kiss someone. I am also disappointed by the lack of Jann’s dad in this movie. It feels like there should have been more interactions between Jann and his dad as it would have made the final scene between them have more impact. The movie is 2 hours long but even that feels too much for what is a generic story. The final race is very noticeable CGI and kind of ugly at times too.
Overall, Gran Turismo is a surprisingly solid film. The trailers and marketing didn’t do a good job of selling this. It’s not going to blow you away but it’s very enjoyable. Neill’s is a great director who has made too many misses. Hopefully, this is the beginning of his return.
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