Truth In 24: A Brief Review
Recently I started following the American Le Mans Series. As I wrote in my post about the 12 Hours of Sebring, I was amazed by the vigor and skill required in this sort of racing… but I had no idea what really goes into this, until now. Originally aired during prime time on ESPN a day before Sebring, Audi’s documentary Truth In 24 highlights the legendary victory of Audi over Peugeot in the 2008 24 Hours of Le Mans in a seemingly impossible battle. This film, narrated by Jason Statham, is truly an epic and definitely the most engaging documentary I’ve ever seen. For more of my thoughts on it, continue on into the post.
My Thoughts
Audi’s story is a truly remarkable one: the rise of a true competitor for their aging R10 TDI provided an intense challenge that, throughout most of the 2008 season, got the best of them, leaving Peugeot in the lead. Le Mans proved to be race that required every single member of Team Joest to be on its toes for the entirety of the full-day-long test. The documentary captures this in complete brilliance. As said early in the movie, it’s no easy task to translate the feel of Le Mans onto a screen, but somehow they’ve done it. I felt all the disappointment, the joy, the adrenaline, and the chills of this race. The best part, or at least my favorite, is when Allan McNish gives his accelerated walkthrough of the Circuit De La Sarthe, naming the gears and corner cambers from memory. When he’s done, he just sits there for a moment, reminiscing. It’s truly moving.
All in all, I’ll give this an Ignition Unlimited Media Rating of 10 out of 10. There is truly not a single undesirable thing about it: from the action, to the interviews, to Jason Statham’s gruff narration, and to the story itself, Truth In 24 is a gem unlike any other I’ve seen.
Truth In 24 is available for download for free from the iTunes Store. You can get it from here.