If, like me and most other boys, you grew up with a fascination and obsession with cars, there would eventually be a need to get a better idea of their history. I remember watching this movie when I was about 10 or so...maybe even younger, but the history lesson it provided stuck with me for a lifetime.
This is definitely a kids movie that encourages suspension of disbelief in order to teach a lesson, and it works! It's surprising to watch it again now and realize how much it actually taught back then that remains stuck in my database of random trivia.
That being said, back then you couldn't distinguish 80s cheese for what it is now, so reviewing this as an adult is an entirely different perspective. It's campy, cheesy, and at (most) times, highly cringeworthy...but wasn't that the 80s in general? And I had completely forgotten that Niki Lauda was in it...an inclusion that, for what it's worth for a racing legend, wasn't really necessary. One thing that it definitely has going for it is the inclusion of so many authentic cars true to their history. How did they manage to get so many of them?!
Ultimately, this is a top nerds' movie, that's for sure. A lot of the info you get from it can now easily be found on Wikipedia, but to condense it into one single production with what would have been defined back then as "fun" isn't a triumph of infotainment, but for its day, it sure as heck works. That being said, it's definitely not a movie for today's kids, intelligent enough to be highly cynical about it.
