Review of Love the Beast (2009) by Paul M — 11 Dec 2009

Is Eric Bana's passion for his car strong enough to carry a whole film? Why yes, it is. I don't particularly care about Eric Bana and I have never had any interest in cars or racing. But Love the Beast, Bana's documentary about his relationship with his 1976 Falcon coupe (his 'beast'), makes me care by bringing me into that world and developing a sort of narrative between these two characters. There are even subplots involving Bana's friends.

We begin by learning how Bana came to own the car as a teen and how he and his friends devoted so much time into keeping it running all these years. He carefully describes the significance it has had in his relationships with his friends. One might think the car just has sentimental value for that reason, but as the documentary moves along through interviews with Jay Leno (an avid car collector), Jeremy Clarkson, and Dr. Phil McGraw, Bana makes the point that the machine is like a person, its flaws making it a unique entity with a psychosymbiotic connection to its long-time owner. And with that connection comes responsibilities.

Love the Beast then follows Bana's attempts to race his car, its damage in a crash, and his contemplation of whether it is worth his while to repair the car or not. In some ways, it is like seeing a man puzzling over whether a damaged relationship is worth salvaging. Bana's advisers urge him to repair it. Clarkson in particular is adamant. McGraw offers some interesting ideas about Bana's relationship with the car and why it is imperative he repair it, ideas I would go so far as to call insights.

As a Canadian who previously had just about no knowledge of this world of Australian racing, '70s car culture, or Eric Bana for that matter, there is something anthropologically fascinating about Love the Beast. It presents its world sympathetically, to be sure, but despite Bana's involvement, his look at himself and this world is not manipulative at all; his objectivity allows the viewer to form their own opinions. I learned a thing or two watching Love the Beast, not just intellectually, but emotionally. I can now comprehend car-lovers, even if I'll never be one. And that's what good films should do: leave us a little wiser. Wisdom, you see, is not just understanding one another, it's understanding one another compassionately.