Screening as part of the Mill Valley Film Festival‘s Closing Night, director James Mangold‘s latest film, “Ford v Ferrari,” made its Western United States premiere to a packed crowd. Mangold is driven by instinct, his affinity for a given project fueled by the depth of the characters that inhabit its world. “Ford v Ferrari” sees Mangold in top form behind the wheel. As a director, he’s built for endurance, not unlike the revolutionary Ford GT40 that Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) and Ken Miles (Christian Bale) build to beat the Ferrari racing team at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in his film.

Shelby, Miles, Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts), Enzo Ferrari (Remo Girone), Lee Iacocca (Jon Bernthal). These are the types of unique, layered characters to whom Mangold is drawn. In fact, Mangold isn’t particularly a fan of racing. “The marketing in the movie pushes the racing aspect pretty hard,” the director said. “But the reality is that it’s also a pretty beefy drama.”

Read the rest of the interview at The Playlist.