The Last Race

Interesting documentary about racing car culture and how it all works. I was excited to see this and had high expectations. There are some long shots without audio. Some parts are bland but in general a good watch.

I really couldn't get behind the way this movie was filmed. Maybe there was a time quota they had to fill but a little less than half of this doc could have been cut out. A lot of abstract angles of the track and silent close ups on drivers that's would be nice additions if they weren't 4 minutes long a piece. That being said, I was still able to finish it and enjoyed what little bits of actual interviews there were.

Let me start off by saying that I am a grassroots racing fan. Growing up, Saturday night was the night to go to the track with my dad and watch the asphalt gladiators do battle. I was fortunate enough to be able to race at my home track for a little while and will cherish those moments forever. Our track also went through owner changes, sitting dormant for a year and NASCAR affiliation coming and going. I saw this film advertised on Facebook, but unfortunately the trailer pretty much sums up the entire film. There are some real moments, such as the interview with the track owner towards the end of the film and the driver speaking of winning a race for his father after he had passed. The film does show what the track means to the racing community, especially being an area where so many tracks were prevalent during the birth of auto racing. That being said, this film is entirely too slow. The majority of the content is absolutely nothing. The opening scene set the tone for the film. I can appreciate the message that the film does loosely deliver, but it failed to deliver with any true excitement. There is some cool racing footage in the film, but most of it is just oddly misplaced here and there. Again, I can appreciate the people in the film and the message being made, but I feel it could've been portrayed in an entire different light.

I have been watching racing for 50 years. This is by far the worst documentary I have ever seen. No information shared, the photography is useless. You could have told the story in three minutes. I have no idea who the people were, there back stories, the why, or anything. Terrible story telling and I am a huge fan of grass roots racing and cheesy shows and documentaries, but this is the worst I have ever seen. So sad. They asked about a Spoiler alert? There are none, nothing to spoil. The story is so bad, one scene is a stationary camera shot of the office and Jim it trying to open a package with his teeth. No dialogue, no explanation. NOTHING.

Another scene is from a race car, it passes every car and then the wall is shown for several laps. Then smoke, did it break, who is it, did he win? Again, nothing. So bad.

From start to finish . . . From the title to the closing credits . . . This was a negative depressing presentation. It dwelled on the "junk" classes that race at Riverhead . . . The dregs of racing . . . The despair of the Cromartys. Ugh.

It never mentioned or displayed the top class . . . The Modifieds . . . Which are very fast, very costly race cars driven by very accomplished wheelmen. The production made Riverhead look like a little hick track that is standing in the way of progress . . . I.e. Another damn Wal-Mart.

This is a well-produced piece of trash that does nothing but hurt the sport of racing.

I am not sorry that I watched but I damn well will not recommend it to anyone for fear of triggering a dismal look at motorsports . . . And life in general.