Journey to Le Mans (2014) User Reviews

good movie but terrible soundtrack

[chrismmiles · 7/10 · 2 December 2014]

How documentarians always manage to film something when a big event is about to unfold is beyond me. This was a good movie and gave a great inside look into Le Mans.

The direction is decent, however, you don't get the full feel of the races they show or the speed these cars achieve. It could have been aided from the use of Go-Pro or their equivalent in this instance.

I also would have liked to have had more of an inside look into what is JOTA and more background information about the racers,

Only major gripe is the soundtrack is terrible, it belongs in a Disney movie.

Pretty good trip with a fine LMP2 team

[aurion7 · 6/10 · 23 March 2021]

So many horrible reviews! Wow. It's not that bad. I agree that there are scenes that are re-used, and the soundtrack is a mis-match, in my opinion. Maybe they had to fill a time slot and therefore put in extra/filler scenes? This should be a documentary that fits in a 60 minute slot, not over 90 minutes. That would help. But I still enjoyed journeying with the team members as they attempted to win races and then to make it to the top at Le Mans. Maybe since I'm an amateur racer I was able to get into it more easily than some viewers, I don't know. And I get tired the hype and glamour surrounding the zillion dollar F1 and LM juggernauts. Going along with a smaller team and vicariously experiencing their ups and downs as they go for it felt good to me.

Not one for the real motor sport fans.

[john-decoy · 3/10 · 11 November 2014]

Sorry to say that this was not made by petrol heads and it showed. Too many close ups of neatly coiffured blokes and not enough of the engineering or racing. It would have been nice to have a full lap of in car footage, instead we were treated to a succession of close up's of people stood in the garage. The editing was constantly to quick (except when interviewing the frankly bland participants).A number of clips were used on more than one occasion (the exit from the pits behind a Chevrolet for example)which detracted from the continuity. Overall a big disappointment lacking depth and insight, it left me cold. The makers admitted in the question and answer session, following the premier, that they had not seen other racing based films and it showed. There was never any real tension created, even in the crash sequence, and at no time did I connect with the main character. If you are a true motor sport fan best give this limp offering a miss. Sorry.

Wrong cinematic viewpoint for presenting racing.

[e-Rogue · 3/10 · 25 May 2015]

Journey to Le Mans is a documentary presenting team Jota's quest to win Le Mans in the LMP2 division.

Much of the race footage is presented in slow motion, and the melodramatic soundtrack is unrelenting. These aspects betray the innate excitement of high-speed racing. The film doesn't even present a summary of the race in any desirable form. I have to believe an under-produced bland documentary would have been much more interesting.

What it does somewhat well is profile the drivers of team Jota. The raw footage is top-notch, alas the actual racing clips are very short.

My one word summary would be "boring", which is a very unfortunate description of the pinnacle of high-speed auto racing.

It's really Jota's Journey

[tom-810-150081 · 3/10 · 29 November 2014]

When you are a petrolhead, a 'journey to Le Mans' movie will get you interested. And I am a petrolhead, with some Le Mans experience, and I can tell you this is nothing like a Le Mans experience. It really is nothing more than a personal story of the Jota team. Must be great to see for friends and relatives of those involved in the Jota team, but why releasing it to the general public? It puzzles me. Considering it's not that interesting for petrolheads, fairly boring for motorsport enthousiast and straight-out insulting for documentary fans.

Sure, getting Patrick Stewart (needs no introduction) and Tiff Needell (a car journalist) looks good on the poster, but honestly, the Jota LMP2 team is not that interesting. The documentary contains half kind of interviews with those involved, and half clips of racing action. Le Mans Radio audio-clips are edited to the racing video's to make sure you can follow what's going on with the Jota LMP2 team.

The title of this documentary is misleading and don't get your hopes up about it's quality.

Not For Car Guys

[john-a-chavez · 1/10 · 20 December 2014]

If you are a car guy skip on this film. The are so many repetitive scenes that it just makes you wonder who put this together. They show the same scene 6 times. How is that possible when you telling a story. The producer cuts from one angle to another and you don't really get to see or enjoy a slow motion shot and on top of that they put a sound effect that clearly doesn't belong but, to make it worse its the same sound effect they just used 3 minutes ago. Also they talk about crashes but fail to show you it and skip to a person talking about it. We want to see the whole scene. Don't tell us what and how it happened, SHOW US. It was poorly thought out and will just get us car guys angry. All you had to do was end the movie with the car going around La'Sarthe for a whole lap and we would of been happy.

A moving documentary

[sales-173-296546 · 10/10 · 30 November 2014]

For me this was a film filled with childhood nostalgia, going to Le Mans with my Dad and watching him race. I think more than anything this captures the reality, the team spirit and drive of the individual man to win. It makes me sad to read comments about it being only about 'Jota' a small team - who wants to watch them? It is not misleading - read the synopsis, this film says exactly what it is, an inside story about a group of guys wanting to make it in the greatest race in the world. So it is OK for Audi to do it? What if it were Porsche? I think perhaps some have missed the point the filmmakers captured which is the authenticity of just a bunch of passionate chaps who take on the world. Surely THIS is inspiration beyond all else? Or perhaps it just let's an old guy think 'hey I could do that'. For me it is a ten out of ten.

Not as interesting

[magmag8 · 4/10 · 24 January 2015]

This looks like a movie paid by the team itself. Not for petrol heads, as it fails to show the interesting aspects of motor sport, which usually doesn't happen on the racetrack. Eg: a huge crash destroys the car 2 weeks before a big race. 30 seconds explanation of "how we got our s**t back together and rebuilt the car"...well, that's quite an accomplishment to dig deeper in, no? why skipping?

Also: - plenty of scenes are repeated. Cheap way of filling time? Don't show me driver #1 entering a corner, overtaking that blue car, then going in the pits to change the driver, then to see driver #2 overtake the same car in the same spot. If you used the same shot twice in 3 minutes i will notice and get annoyed. Then I write a review about the movie because you're wasting my time and i'm bitter. - the music chosen sounds like it was bought at Walmart (or Lidl in Europe). If you want to make a serious movie you can't cheap out on this.

These aspects really ruin a movie which I was looking forward to see, and will ruin to you too.

An hour of "Inside F1" by Discovery is MUCH better

[freddy-41-529926 · 3/10 · 17 July 2015]

Those documentaries made by mainstream "culture channels" are basically made for people who know little or nothing on a specific subject or sport. Great for my sisters to learn on car racing... That is it!

This piece is not even that.

I simply could NOT deal with the fact that this is a BAD promotional film for JOTA. Not that JOTA is a bad team. not at all. My out most respect for such a young team.

BUT trying to be thrifty and NOT buying the rights for important clips from FIA or whoever to show key overtakes which are actually narrated on the film or not showing the events they discuss, well in a car racing film or documentary it is the equivalent of watching "Toy Story" without Woody.

As to discussing technical stuff or even basic explanations, it is a total fail.

C'mon! You guys wanted to promote JOTA Racing but you ended up promoting well... pit stops and the faces of your drivers.

HUGE BUMMER. Get a better PR adviser next time.

Bland an uninspiring

[adogcalledstray · 2/10 · 21 November 2018]

This has been lingering on my Netflix to-watch list and I finally got around to it. Being a bit of a car guy and racing fan, I sincerely wanted to like "Journey to Le Mans" (2014)

I didn't. It just did not do anything for me.

Being about a small privateer team, it already offers a unique perspective wholly different from "Truth in 24". Why oh why then does it try so hard to ape that nuts and bolts 'these are the facts laid bare' type of storytelling? Trying to do that with this team using far fewer filmmaking resources just doesn't work.

It's clear the filmmakers couldn't show up for every race meet, every practice, every team meeting and walk through-talk through. They haven't got the firepower. And yet they still try to pull off a story about building up to the big race using a patchwork of mostly generic laps and repetitive crew footage devoid of emotion. What is supposed to be the powerhouse and cache of Patrick Stewart and Tiff Needell end up being a crutch it leans on in order to patch up missing race/event coverage.

Such weaknesses needn't be deficiencies. If only more focus was put towards zeroing in on emotion. If only the filmmakers concentrated on the team principals' love for the sport, about what drives them, why they put in so much time money and effort towards racing. If only they showcased how they FEEL, then maybe we too, the audience, can feel. See: "Love The Beast" with Eric Bana.

Alas, I only came off feeling as though the filmmakers had done a disservice to the interviewees: They all come off as being boring storytellers. To interview someone is to ask them to tell a story. Unfortunately everyone seems to be the type to not expand on their feelings and motivations, who aren't open to talking about how they feel, and just would not open up about which part of their childhood influenced (and continues to influence) this desire, this drive towards victory in the rarefied field of Le Mans top finishers. I mean, there was this part about Simon Dolan being kicked out of school and then... I don't know, pursuing education on his own terms??? He's an accountant, which means his credentials are no joke, even if his education is unconventional and or self taught. Maybe the guy is a supreme autodidact, which means he has in him an amazing story, an amazing journey to share to the audience. Yet I barely got to know him. I had to read about him in another article just to fill in the blanks of "who is this man, and why should I be rooting for him to win?"

Being that I ended up knowing so little about his personality, his family life and how he is as a person, all I know is that he seems to be someone who I'd trust with money, an airline, and yes, a racing team.

But I would not anchor my story on him.

Racing made boring

[jeffdstockton · 1/10 · 2 March 2021]

Amateurish attempt to hype on team (Jota) with generic cacophony of visual snippets and uninspired collection of quotes from participants. No insight into racing, management, Le Mans... a sad, self-indulgent waste of time.

Great documentary!!!!

[jollyjocker13 · 10/10 · 1 December 2014]

This is a great documentary/film. It does exactly what it says on the tin and doesn't pretend to be something it's not. Motor racing is something that is usually seen only from the track side and from the driver's perspective, but finally a racing film where we don't just see the unreachable glamour of the sport but the blood sweat and tears of all those involved (probably too covered in motor oil to appear on screen in Hollywood blockbusters!), because surprise surprise, without mechanics, engineers, pit crew etc. etc. etc. there would be no racing! Cleverly put together, amazing cinematography, some amazing original music, totally enjoyed and highly recommended...

Incredible pictures of Le Mans

[charlotte-173-114373 · 10/10 · 30 November 2014]

OK so it is very one dimensional focusing on one team, but it says that on the tin. Surely Truth in 24 was as such? So I went in to this not expecting the next Senna or Rush or even Ti24, I went into it hoping to learn more about a small privateer team, an angle we often overlook at Le Mans, and that is exactly what I got, and in bucket loads. The cinematography was superb, the slow-mo shots breathtaking and images of Le Mans from angles I had never seen. So if you want all glitz and glamour with rivalry and stars maybe not for you, but if you like fast cars and beautiful images, with a good underdog story, then this is a must watch.

Just brilliant

[liz-174-268170 · 10/10 · 9 December 2014]

I was gripped from the start and it just got better and better. Anyone with an interest in motor racing will be wrapped by this film. I'm not a huge motor sport fan but I found this film riveting. The story line is so strong it makes the film appealing to everyone. A must watch. The voice of Patrick Stewart narrating is just the icing on the cake. The professionalism of the racing team and the comradeship combined with the dedication and drive is inspiring. The film gives us an insight into the team effort from the drivers to the trainer and the mechanics. Also the camera work is astounding. I have bought the DVD and will be watching it again and again.

Fantastic insight!

[haphazard72 · 8/10 · 15 February 2015]

I know nothing about Le Mans so I had no preconceived ideas about what to expect from this.

To say I enjoyed it would be an understatement!

A fantastic insight into the event and what it takes to get there and to compete.

Some have said it was very one sided as it only followed one team, and that is correct, but that is what it was meant to be about anyway. Enjoy it for what it is. (Warning: TT3D is the same, so don't complain about that one when you see it!!!!)

What really made this a great watch though was the cinematography! Superb camera use, footage and techniques. Loved it!

If you're a racing fan, then I highly recommend this....

Brilliant

[kate-170-128692 · 10/10 · 26 November 2014]

This was the perfect look into Le Mans. It wasn't a boring thing just talking tech like others I have seen made for TV, this had the cinema shots that made it feel like a film, while it was real and based in reality, the repetitive hard reality that took the view of the whole team. Nice to see it made by an indie most of these things are business things for corporates, this felt like a team of guys who just loved to race, meant more because of it. Seeing Le Mans from the inside when as a fan I have only seen it from the outside is very cool. It may not be one to watch with the girlfriend but for anyone who wants to see stunning cars and a team of nice guys pushing hard, Its a must see IMO. Will be watching again.

Great Documentary Film!

[gusreyes · 8/10 · 5 September 2017]

Right on the spot.

Dreams have no brand. A Humane and heart felted documentary. A never surrender lesson. A triumph over corporations and big motor companies.

The hell with racing tech and progress and all that bull we always have to see in this kind of documentaries.

This one is about people fighting for their dreams. The way it should be.