Love The Beast
Actor Eric Bana attends the after party for
Love The Beast | Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4givckRHjNI
Much like Steve McQueen, Australian actor Eric Bana loves cars and racing. During his career he has looked for roles that tie in with cars, but eventually he just decided to shoot his own documentary in 2009 on his own 25-year history with a 1974 Ford XB Falcon Hardtop that he bought when he was just 15 years old. The movie is highly regarded among car enthusiasts.
What if you were a Hollywood movie star with an obsession for cars and racing? You would probably read every script with even the tiniest link to the subject matter, in the hope that you could tell a great car story of the likes of Grand Prix, Le Mans or Mad Max. Then one day you happened to open your garage door and sitting there, right in front of you, was the film you had been searching for.
This is what happened to Eric Bana and this time around, the co-star is his very own Ford GT Falcon Coupe- THE BEAST. Eric realized the story was in fact, about him, his first car, a lifetime of ownership and a lifetime of friendship. He set about documenting his own 25 year long love story. A simple tale of one mans ongoing relationship with his very first car. After years of precious restoration, Eric and his 3 closest friends, decided to enter the car into one of the most grueling and dangerous motor races that exists: The Targa Tasmania Rally. This would be a personal Everest for both man and machine, until...on day 4 of the race, tragedy strikes. The man who was hell bent on trying to convey how much he and those around him loved THE BEAST, had just destroyed it.
Eric has now unwillingly cast himself in his own real life drama. We follow him from inside the race car to the surreal world of the red carpet. This compelling true story follows Eric s progression as a car lover, and as a person conflicted by what he has done.
The personal and social pressures mount up in the face of rebuilding a car that means so much to him. Along the way Eric seeks guidance and wisdom from not only the inner sanctum of his 3 life long friends but also Jay Leno, Jeremy Clarkson, and Dr. Phil.