Columbia Pictures, PlayStation Productions and 2.0 Entertainment’s Gran Turismo (dubbed from the Hollywood film of the same name; UA) is a biographical sports drama film. It is based on the racing simulation video game series of the same name, developed by Polyphony Digital. It tells the true story of Jann Mardenborough, a teenage Gran Turismo player who ultimately became a professional race car driver.
Jason Hall and Alex Tse have written a story which is quite inspiring. The screenplay, penned by Jason Hall and Zach Baylin, is fast-paced and engaging. Since it is about car racing, there is an element of thrill and excitement all through the drama. However, the writers have not milked the human side of the drama to the fullest because of which it does not become a heart-touching experience. Nevertheless, the car racing scenes do afford thrill.
Archie Madekwe shines in the role of Jann Mardenborough. He plays the character with understanding. David Harbour is terrific as Jann’s trainer, Jack Salter. Orlando Bloom lends lovely support as Danny Moore, a marketing executive at Nissan. Darren Barnet makes his mark as Matty Davis, a top GT Academy driver and Jann’s rival. Djimon Hounsou is wonderful in the role of Jann’s father, Steve Mardenborough. Geri Halliwell stands out as Jann’s mother. Takehiro Hira has his moments as Kazunori Yamauchi, creator of Gran Turismo. Josha Stradowski is effective as Nicholas Capa, a rival of Jann. Daniel Puig makes his presence felt in the role of Coby Mardenborough, Jann’s brother. Maeve Courtier-Lilley is very good as Audrey, Jann’s love interest. Thomas Kretschmann (as Nicholas Capa’s father), Richard Cambridge (as Felix), Emelia Hartford (as Leah Vega), Pepe Barroso (as Antonio Cruz), Sang Heon Lee (as Joo-Hwan Lee), Max Mundt (as Klaus Hoffman), Mariano González (as Henry Evas), Harki Bhambra (as Avi Bhatt), Lindsay Pattison (as Chloe McCormick), Théo Christine (as Marcel Durand) and Nikhil Parmar (as Persol) lend adequate support.
Neill Blomkamp’s direction is quite nice. But how one wishes, he had made the drama more humane. Lorne Balfe and Andrew Kawczynski’s background music is quite nice. Jacques Jouffret’s cinematography is excellent. Editing (by Colby Parker, Jr. and Austyn Daines) is sharp. Dubbing is good.
On the whole, Gran Turismo is a fair entertainer but its performance in Hindi will be dull. Even as far as the original English version is concerned, the box-office performance will be adversely affected due to the showcasing being below the mark.
Released on 25-8-’23 at Cinepolis Bhandup (daily 1 show) and 1 other cinema of Bombay by Sony Pictures Films India Pvt. Ltd. Publicity & opening: dull. …….Also released all over. Opening was adversely affected due to poor promotion and too much competition.