3: The Dale Earnhardt Story

I sat and watched "3 The Dale Earnhardt Story" the other day. I thought the acting was very well done. Barry Pepper was very believable as "THE INTIMIDATOR" although slightly slimmer than Dale. I thought the movie could have gone into a lot more detail on the life on and off the track of an American icon. I have been a NASCAR fan for as long as I can remember, and have always hoped for a movie about the life of Dale. unfortunately my wish came true(kind of) this is not the movie I had hoped for. I understand the writers and producers got into as much detail as they could in a two hour movie. so so so much was left out though. Not sure when the law came about that a movie was only allowed to be two hours long. The movie never really touched on the incredible business person that Theressa Earnhardt is and how much she had helped turn Dales name into an empire. Never did it touch on the creation of D.E.I. or dales other many ventures off the track. Probably the thing i missed most of all was Dales reactions to seeing Dale Jr.s first wins. Even to racing w/ Jr. and Kerry for the first time. I must say though I was pretty interested in the movie till the sequence when Niel Bonnett was killed. Niel was Dale's best friend, and they never really touched on how his death had effected him. I was really disappointed when Niel had died in the movie. then they went to a commercial break. When the movie came back on we jump ahead what six years to Dale winning the Daytona 500 in 98.Then from 98 to his death in 2001 all in the matter of what ten minutes. I think this movie would have been a lot better if they would have taken the time to fit the important stuff in it. The movie did showcase the fact that dale was human and wasn't the super hero everyone thought of him. Although it briefly touched on his first two marriages it never said why or how those marriages ended. Whitch left me a lil confused. so hopefully someday some one writer out there will sit down and write a script about Dales life that is truly a movie that will be worthy of the Earnhardt name and legacy. Because for me although "3 The Dale Earnhardt Story" did have a few bright spots, I don't think it was worthy of bearing the name of Dale Earnhardt. I somehow think that if Dale were alive he'd be very disappointed in this movie too. I give this movie a 5/10 but only because of the acting.

This is overall an excellent movie. A must see for all nascar fans.I only saw 1 not already mentioned error. Dale Earnhardt actually drove 2 different times or stints in his carrier for Richard Childress. He drove for another owner from 1982-1983. The other owner was Bud Moore and the car was the #15 Wrangler Thunderbird. In 1984 He(Earnhardt) returned to Childress taking the reigns of the #3 car from Ricky Rudd. The movie was very interesting in the way Dale Earnhardt was presented as a human being. One that had feelings, faults, shortcomings and not as some kind of bigger than life superhero.Though now a legend in racing it shows how he climbed the ladder to success. Excellent job by Barry Pepper.

To those of you complaining that this picture isn't this or it doesn't do that ... IT'S JUST A MOVIE.

I am a NASCAR fan, though not an Earnhardt fan. I enjoyed the movie and thought it offered a little insight into what made Dale Earnhardt tick - from his relationship with his father and failed loves to the relationship with his own children.

Barry Pepper did an admirable job portraying Earnhardt. Kudos to him.

The film gave you the basic story andn did as well as it could in two hours. Hey, that's a lot of ground to cover!

As far as footage not being shot at every track, again - it's a movie!

There are far worse things on TV today, like Survivor and all that reality dreck. This was entertaining.

I would have liked more of a look at the behind-the-scenes stuff at the tracks, such as how The Intimidator interacted with other drivers.

How about 3 II!

This movie will likely get good viewership because it was heavily marketed, but it made too many assumptions about Dale's life. They did not do enough research prior to releasing this movie. Many, many important parts are left out, and it felt extremely disjointed and rushed. Often, I was saying, "oh, I guess they are moving on to the next thing." The ending was terrible and did not delve into an important part about how he became who he is today. Trust me, many non-Nascar folks realized a lot after his death. I am a racing fan, and I think many who love Dale Earnhardt will be afraid to admit that this movie was terrible. I hope some are not afraid. I do not think Formula One would ever allow such a poor movie about their superstar such as a Senna or a Schumacher. I give this 1.5 out of 5 stars. A big shame.

I am sure this was a good movie for those who knew who Dale Earhart was BEFORE he died. For the rest of us, it is just OK.

The movie stars Barry Pepper as Dale Earnhart. Pepper has done some good work before (The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, The Green Mile), and puts forth an excellent performance here.

J.K. Simmons (The Closer, Law & Order) was also very good as Ralph Earnhart, Dale's father.

As I said, if you are into NASCAR, then you will enjoy this movie. Of course, if you are a rabid NASCAR and Dale Earnhart fan, then I doubt that 88 minutes will satisfy you.