Currently, the McLaren Formula
One is at the foot of the Championship table with engine problems being the woes
that fall upon the team and drivers. So, with the McLaren team is such a dire
position it seems ideal to go back to a time when the iconic McLaren name was
in the ascendency. Directed by Roger Donaldson, McLaren follows Kiwi racing car
driver and designer Bruce McLaren from growing up in his small town in New Zealand to
designing World Championship winning racing cars.
Bruce McLaren is painted as a determined,
hardworking and talented figure in the world of motorsport, finding success in
many different formulas and racing categories. The time he devoted to the sport was
so great it must have impacted his family life though the movie does not
investigate this. Whilst, a look into the man’s family life may have opened him up
on an emotional level (thereby adding more depth to the film) the areas that film does investigate is very
interesting even if some understanding of engineering may be required.
Due to the limited resources available
(the sport was still in its infancy in the 60s) director Roger Donaldson combines reconstructive
footage with archival footage and interviews, this works reasonably well but
the reconstructive footage does feel like it served more as padding than anything greatly informative. What’s
also interesting to note is how the drivers and mechanics shrugged off the
death of fellow racing drivers. This inaction and belief that death was part of
the sport contributed significantly to the high number of fatalities in the
era. Sadly, however, the film doesn’t go into great depth regarding the effect the high
death toll had on Bruce McLaren.
The climax of the documentary is
undoubtedly high emotional, but thrills and quality of material available means McLaren
isn’t on a par with Senna.
3/5
George Best was
football’s first celebrity, many dubbed him the Fifth Beetle for his supreme
good look and massive female fanbase. Not only was he supremely good looking but he was an incredible
football player, one of the best of his generation, a generation that included the likes of Pele and Eusebio. The documentary, simply titled Best, speaks admirably about the talents of
George Best, but it’s not a documentary that spends the entire timewaxing
lyrically about how the ball was glued to his feet. Instead it’s a very honest
and very moving documentary about a sportsman who threw away his talent because
of deadly addiction to alcohol. What’s striking is the friends of George Best
not only blame the man himself, but themselves, they feel they did not do
enough to turn him away from drink.
Comparisons to the
Bobby Moore, whose life was also discussed in a documentary could easily be made, and both are
refreshingly honest, yet respectful documentaries. George Best is an endlessly
fascinating subject, a great talent ruined by drink and a celebrity lifestyle
and the film serves as a warning to celebrity culture and the
hounding by press and fans. Making use of archival footage and talking heads,
the Best documentary lives up to its name becoming one the finest documentaries
on the sport. People can chuckle how
George Best may have spent his money on booze, birds, fast cars and squandered
the rest but it was a lifestyle never made him happy. A sad documentary about a
wasted talent.
4/5
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