The tagline for Neil Blomkamp’s upcoming Gran Turismo film has taken permanent residence in my brain ever since I watched the trailer - "From Gamer to Racer." It’s beautifully silly and sells the film’s ridiculous - yet based on a true story - premise in ways that somehow work.

The idea of a worthless piece of shit gamer becoming a globally recognised racing legend is ridiculous, but apparently not outside the realm of possibility. You could make a similar movie about someone who kicks ass at Guitar Hero becoming a world-famous musician, or a dude who loves Minecraft suddenly developing a talent for architecture. Driving has a more realistic application given that Gran Turismo is a fairly grounded simulator, although the film still presents it as a tried-and-true fairy tale where gamers are deadbeat losers who live with their parents and have no concept of emotional intimacy. It’s all about wanking, Doritos, and high scores.

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Protagonist Jann is a digital petrolhead who loves dusting his friends online and keeping a convenient collection of several decades worth of Gran Turismo games on his shelf placed next to a bunch of driving paraphernalia. He has good looks, a nice room, and a talent for gaming that doesn’t translate to anything in the real world. We’ll ignore the fact that it does and streaming or competing can generate a lot of money these days, a reality the film glosses over in favour of precious gamer drama.

The central narrative seems to revolve around Jann and a bunch of other gamers enlisting in some form of hyper-budget boot camp where they are slowly taken away from the comfort of Gran Turismo and placed in the cockpits of expensive supercars. Gamers are scrawny nerds though, so David Harbour and Orlando Bloom are brought in to teach them a thing or two. It is wrought with cliche and stereotypes that are decades out of date, an element of this movie that only serves to make it even more absurd. Our main character comes out on top, joining the ranks of Nissan with fellow drivers who treat him like an outsider because he’s a gamer.

No real skill, real drive, or real prospects. Just a reject who crawled out of the womb, picked up a controller and skated through life without a care in the world. The trailer also ruins most of the plot too, so we know he suffers from a massive crash and has to earn respect from his peers, which I’m assuming he does given it’s based on a true story. For years Gran Turismo has been known as the ultimate driving simulator for motor enthusiasts, and series’ creator Kazunori Yamauchi has made it clear that each new game intends to appease existing fans and bring newcomers into the fold of an automobile culture that is now fading away.

Gran Turismo 7

When I imagine a Gran Turismo film, it’s more reminiscent of an oil-slicked love letter than an underdog story such as this, but it’s what we’re getting. Gamer to racer, with all the cliches you could ever ask for.

Harbour and Bloom chew the scenery and seem aware of the roles they’re being asked to inhabit, leaning into the sportsmanship of it all with the charisma of a straight-to-DVD Air Bud sequel. It works though, somehow, and I’m a sucker for rising from the ashes stories like this with a predictable yet saccharinely sentimental moment of victory.

If Gran Turismo can give us that, I guess I don’t mind gamers being thrown under the Ferrari 812 GTS.

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