Here’s A Handpicked List Of Car Movies For Your Self-quarantine Binge

If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve quarantined yourself inside your home while the experts figure out a way to fight a novel pathogen that shall not be named (yes, even we are sick of hearing the word!). We know it’s quite a bummer to stay indoors, especially when it’s bright and sunny outside. However, it is essential that we stay put, affected or not, as that seems to be the only way to contain this virus.

On the bright side, we can utilise this time to catch up on some TV shows and movies. And being car addicts, we thought we’d make a list of car movies for you to binge on until this pandemic blows away.

Ford v Ferrari

Let’s start with the only car-based movie which almost won an Oscar for the best motion picture. Ford v Ferrari offers a dramatic portrayal of how driver-turned-car designer and chicken farmer Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) and British sports car engineer Ken Miles (Christian Bale) developed the first-ever American car to win the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans. The two actors put on a strong show throughout the movie while the cars gloriously rev past 7000rpm. Oh, it did win the Oscar for Best Film Editing and Best Sound Editing, by the way. So that’s all the more reason to watch it.

Also Read : IRDAI Asks Health Insurance Companies to Cover Coronavirus Illness

Rush

Oscar-winning director Ron Howard’s Rush is a biographical movie that showcases the intense rivalry between two legendary F1 drivers - Niki Lauda and James Hunt. Rush is as authentic as it gets as far as the feud between Lauda and Hunt are concerned. What sets this movie apart from the rest is Hans Zimmer’s brilliant score and eargasmic soundtrack from good ‘ol internal combustion engines. What makes it an even more interesting watch are the actors - the charismatic Chris Hemsworth (or Thor to most of you) and Daniel Brühl - the latter who not only managed to shed all traces of his role as a Nazi officer in Inglorious Basterds to look and sound like Niki Lauda.

Gone in 60 Seconds

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Gone in 60 Seconds is an action heist movie starring Nicholas Cage as the lead. Instead of the Declaration of Independence, Cage along with a few accomplices nick a wide variety of cars ranging from a Humvee to a beautiful 1967 Shelby GT500 nicknamed Eleanor. A must watch for some carjacking lessons. Spoiler alert: there’s a heartbreaking scene towards the end of the movie.

Bullitt 

A classic cult American movie featuring the king of cool Steve McQueen and a Highland Green Ford Mustang GT 390 is renowned for having the best car chase scene in movie history. Yep, it goes on for ten minutes and fifty-three seconds!  Definitely worth a watch for that alone. 

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift

Tokyo Drift is one of the select few F&F movies which revolves around cars instead of guns, drones, planes, submarines and even tanks. For starters, it features the best of Japan such as the sport of drifting, JDM cars, Han (sorry, he’s not from Japan) and the infamous Yakuza. Unlike other movies from the overblown franchise, this one’s also got a decent plot and plenty of high-speed driving.

Senna

Be warned, Asif Kapadia’s gem of a documentary on Ayrton Senna’s motorsport career is a tear-jerker. It focuses on Senna’s debut in F1 to his unfortunate death through a series of raw footage, video clips, and interviews. Try not to cry. Just try.

Steve McQueen: The Man and the Le Mans

This documentary focuses on Steve McQueen’s life and efforts behind the 1971 Le Mans movie which turned out to be dud. In our opinion, this documentary features one of the best opening scenes ever with a Porsche 917 and Ferrari 512 belting down the Mulsanne straight. What makes this documentary even more interesting is the actual footage captured from the 1970 race. Not so fun fact: two drivers almost lost their lives while filming the Le Mans movie.

Ronin

Here’s another one for you if you’re into high-speed car chases. Ronin features two scenes with epic cars such as the BMW M5 and the Audi S8. It is obvious that someone with good taste in cars was behind those scenes. This impeccable action thriller movie featuring Robert De Niro as the lead is all about spies, mercenaries and gun power. All the good stuff. 

Williams

Williams is a sports documentary that provides insights into the life of the founder and team principal of the Williams Formula One Team - Sir Frank Williams - and his family. Directed by Morgan Matthews, the film revolves around the Williams F1 team right from its inception to the tragic accident that left Sir Frank tetraplegic and life after that. A must watch for motorsport fanatics. On a different note, we sure hope the illustrious Williams F1 bounces back from its recent slump in form in F1 when the new season finally gets off to a start later this year. 

F1: Drive To Survive

F1: Drive To Survive is a documentary series of Netflix that gives you a sneak peek into the complicated world of Formula One. The two seasons on air currently offer a glimpse of what transpired behind the scenes during 2018 and 2019 Formula One World Championship. With 10 episodes each, it sounds like the perfect series to binge on, right?

Special Mention

Cars Trilogy

How can we not include a movie that is called ‘Cars’, right? Well, this CGI animated movie is all about cars that can talk. All three of them are charming movies which centre around our humble hero, Lightning McQueen and a slew of other interesting characters. A fun watch, if you ask us. 

PS: Don’t forget to wash your hands.