 Gran Turismo is a 2023 American biographical sports drama film directed by Neil Blumkamp and it tells a true story of Jan Mardenborough, a teenage Gran Turismo player who became a professional racing car driver. The film stars Archie Medeque as Mardenborough alongside David Harbour and Orlando Bloom. Gran Turismo premiered at the Circuit de Spa Franka Champs in Belgium on July 30th, 2023 and was theatrically released in the United States on August 25th, 2023 by Sony Pictures Releasing and received mixed reviews from critics who praised Blumkamp's direction in racing sequences but criticized its writing. The film generated controversy for its usage of Mardenborough's 2015 crash, but we'll get to that later before we talk about what the movie got wrong. Let's talk about the events in the movie. In the thrilling world of motorsports, Nissan's Nismo Division introduced an innovative game changer, the GT Academy. This audacious project sought to bridge the gap between the virtual and the real, aiming to unearth the hidden talents among skilled players of the renowned racing simulator Gran Turismo and catapult them onto the actual racetracks. At the heart of our tale is Jan Mardenborough, a teenager with an insatiable passion for racing. Despite the disapproval of his father, former footballer Steve Mardenborough, Jan's opportunity to prove himself arrives when he sets a record in a qualification race, earning him a coveted spot at the GT Academy. But just before the defining race, Jan embarks on an unforgettable adventure that sets the stage for the roller coaster ride of his life. The night prior to the qualification race, Jan joins his brother Kobe for a lively party, inadvertently setting off a wild chain of events. The party gets disrupted by the arrival of the police, prompting a daring escapade in their father's car. This escapade doesn't go unnoticed, and their father, Steve, decides to impart a stern life lesson. However, Jan's determination to follow his dream surpasses his father's intentions. He leaves his father's workplace and dashes to the qualification event, clinching a remarkable victory that seals his destiny as a GT Academy recruit. The GT Academy camp is no cakewalk. Under the watchful eye of mentor Jack Salter, the aspirants are put through a grueling series of tests, gradually whittling down the initial pool of 10 contestants to a final five. One of the most electrifying moments of the camp occurs when Jan finds himself in a heart-stopping crash with Jack in the passenger seat. Despite initial skepticism, Jan's claim of brake issues is ultimately confirmed by a thorough analysis, much to everyone's astonishment. The five remaining contenders engage in a thrilling showdown to determine Nissan's representative. In a neck-and-neck race, Jan narrowly emerges as the victor against his American rival, Maddie Davis. Nevertheless, the decision is not straightforward as Danny, the marketing executive, believes that Maddie's commercial appeal makes him the more favorable choice. A tense standoff unfolds, and Jack's unwavering insistence ultimately leads to Jan's selection as the representative. With the title comes a promise. Jan must secure at least fourth place in a series of professional races to earn a pro-license and a contract with the Nissan. His initial foray into professional racing in Austria proves catastrophic as Nicolas Kappa forces Jan into a spin, culminating in a humbling last-place finish. Despite this setback, Jan perseveres, slowly but surely making strides in subsequent races. He falls short in the penultimate race in Spain, but his tenacity leads him to the final qualification race in Dubai. During the climactic Dubai race, Nicolas pushes the envelope too far, leading to a heart-pounding crash. Despite a cracked windshield from the debris, Jan manages to secure a fourth-place finish, thereby clenching his sought-after license. With his dream inching closer to reality, Jan embarks on a journey to Tokyo, where he, alongside Danny and Jack, signs the official contract. Jan also uses his signing bonus to bring Audrey, the young woman he met during his wild night out to Tokyo, initiating a romantic chapter in his life. Jan's debut as an official Nissan driver unfolds at the legendary Nurburgring Nordschleife. He starts the race on a promising note, maintaining a strong position. However, disaster strikes when his car unexpectedly lifts into the air at the treacherous Flugplatz corner, leading to a heart-stopping crash that hurls the car into a crowded spectator area. The aftermath is dire, as Jan is airlifted to the Nurburgring Medical Center. In a gut-wrenching moment, he learns that a spectator lost their life in the crash, plunging him into an abyss of guilt and self-doubt. At this critical juncture, Jack unveils a haunting chapter from his own racing past. He discloses his involvement in a fatal accident at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, an incident that led to the death of a fellow driver and his subsequent retirement from racing. Even though an official inquiry exonerates Jan from any wrongdoing, the professional racing world begins to cast a skeptical eye on Sim drivers. In response, Danny hatches a daring plan to demonstrate their legitimacy on one of the grandest stages in motorsports. Danny assembles a formidable team, comprising of Jan, Maddie, and another GT Academy participant, Antonio Cruz, for the prestigious Le Mans race. The race day unfolds with heart-stopping moments, including a fiery crash and an unfortunate pitstop incident. Antonio is called in early from his last session due to cramps, and a wrenching wheel net mishap during the pitstop sees Jan plummeting down the leaderboard. Desperate to regain his lost positions, Jan resorts to unconventional racing tactics, deviating from the recommended lines he had honed through countless hours of Gran Turismo gameplay. In a breathtaking display of skill and determination, he not only reclaims his lost positions, but also obliterates the competition's lap record. The final lap finds Jan locked in an intense battle with none other than Nicholas. In a heart-pounding sprint, Jan edges out his rival, crossing the finish line just ahead to secure a remarkable third-place finish, marking a triumphant moment for Nissan. The story doesn't conclude with the victory at Le Mans, it's merely the beginning of an incredible journey. In the epilogue, we glimpse the real Jan Mardenborough, who has gone on to compete in over 200 races and even served as his own stunt double in the film. But was much of the movie actually true? While the movie brilliantly captures the essence of Jan Mardenborough's remarkable journey, there are a few aspects where the filmmakers took creative liberties. Let's examine what the movie got wrong, and how these deviations from reality played out on the big screen. The racing sequences and bloomcombs direction, especially during the climactic 24-hour race in France, were praised by most critics, who noted that, while transitioning from its video game origins to a standard race car film, Gran Turismo also serves as a cautionary example of adapting source material that may not align with the cohesive narrative. Is Jack Salter a real person? Gran Turismo changes Mardenborough's story to make the film more thrilling. A lot of the characters were made up for the movie, too. One character, whose real existence isn't quite clear, is Mardenborough's mentor, Jack Salter. Before agreeing to coach the young members of the GT Academy, Jack had no faith in the concept, hated what motorsports had become, and was haunted by his own past as a racer at Le Mans. Harbour's portrayal of the character is captivating, and Jack and Jan's partnership is endearing, even if much of it is not actually based on reality. While Jack Salter has a huge influence on Jan and the Gran Turismo movie, the character is entirely fictional. However, Jack is still an imperative part of Jan's movie story, and Jack's backstory about the crash in Le Mans gives Jan the motivation he needs at the ending of Gran Turismo. Although the character might come off as the typical reluctant mentor archetype, Harbour gives the most powerful performance of the movie as Jack. Despite not being based on a real person, there's no denying how hard felt the connection between the former racer and Jan feels. Harbour's Jack Salter might be a fictional addition to Gran Turismo, but the character could be inspired by a real-life person, or even several of them. Ricardo de Villa is Martinborough's real mentor, and Jack could be loosely based on the Brazilian motorsports designer. The race car driver partook in several different motorsports, including Formula One, and he guided Martinborough at the start of his career. Based on what Martinborough said about his former mentor, de Villa is very likely the source of inspiration for Jack. The GT Academy winner explained, there was a lot of smoke being blown up my ass around that time. There was so much media, and Ricardo was someone very straight down the line. That sounds a lot like Harbour's character in the film. The only difference is that de Villa was never in a major crash like Jack was. Jack could also have been inspired by Gavin Goff, a performance coach who Martinborough also saw as something of a mentor. Martinborough wrote on Twitter about how inspirational Goff was during his time at the Academy, so it's possible that Jack Salter could be an amalgam of two real people in Gran Turismo. A somewhat understandable change to Jan Martinborough's real life in Gran Turismo comes with the drivers he races against. Whether it is at GT Academy, or once he becomes a professional driver, all the other racers Jan competes with are fictional people. Everyone from Mattie Davis and Antonio Cruz to Nicholas Kappa and Frederick Shulin are characters invented for the video game movie story. By changing the names of people Jan races against, Gran Turismo's cast avoids further complicating its true story accuracy. One more example of how Gran Turismo changes Jan Martinborough's true story comes with his entrance into GT Academy. The movie establishes that Jan is such a well-known racer in the simulator that he's automatically selected by GT Academy to participate in an entry race against 19 other competitors from his area. The winner of the race is automatically awarded a spot in GT Academy, and Jan wins after racing to a local video game spot to get in his seat right as the race begins. The real-life account of Jan getting into GT Academy is a bit more complicated. Jan had six weeks to post a great time on an assigned track and climbed the lap rankings to make the cut. It took Jan until the last night of qualifications to post his best time. He then moved on to additional rounds of qualifying before officially earning a spot in GT Academy. Gran Turismo speeds up the entire process to help move the story along and makes Jan's admittance to GT Academy a bit more thrilling. A rather big change to Gran Turismo's true story comes with Jan Martinborough's place as the first winner of GT Academy. The movie shows Danny Moore create the program and makes Jan the first person to graduate as the winner. It makes for a great story, but the reality is that Jan was the third GT Academy winner in real life. The program existed for two years before Jan competed in it, meaning the idea of a gamer becoming a racer had already been done twice before. Lucas Ordonez won the first GT Academy in real life, with Jordan Tressen becoming the second winner before Jan's entry. Gran Turismo also changes Jan Martinborough's first professional race by making it a completely different challenge. In the movie, Jan's first race after winning GT Academy is at the Red Bull Ring racetrack in Austria. He finishes in 27th place after moving up as high as fourth place before Kappa spins him out. Jan Martinborough's first race in real life actually took place at 24 hours of Dubai where he competed in a team with other GT Academy winners and he finished third in his class. Due to the other changes previously discussed, a different first race had to factor into the movie's version of Jan's life. One of the biggest inaccuracies was the nerve-wracking crash that offed one spectator and injured others. The crash is very realistic compared to what happened to Jan in real life, but the timing of it in his racing career is very different. The Nurburgring race takes place after signing with Nissan and getting his FIA license, but the crash makes it the last race Jan competes in before doing the 24-hour of Le Mans. The real story flips the order of events substantially. Jan Martinborough's crash at Nurburgring happened in 2015 in real life. The crash occurred on March 28, 2015, which was four years into Jan's professional racing career. This also means that it happened two years after Jan's breakthrough moment at Le Mans. He finished third at the 24-hour of Le Mans in 2013. Instead of keeping the order of events accurate for the movie, Gran Turismo twists the chronology to try to make Jan's story more inspiring. The changes to Jan Martinborough's crash in Gran Turismo extend to how he returns to racing. In the movie, Jack takes Jan back to Nurburgring in the sight of the crash so he can encourage the traumatized driver to get back behind the wheel. The scene includes Jack telling Jan that if he doesn't start driving again now, he never will. Not only is Jack Salter not a real person, but Jan made the decision to return to racing on his own in real life. He motivated himself to do a 20-lap warm-up one week after the crash to get the feel of racing again, but he ended up doing 110 laps. There's also a noticeable change to Jan Martinborough's true story in Gran Turismo that makes his 24-hour Le Mans performance much more impressive. It's true that Jan finished third and got the podium at the race in real life. However, Gran Turismo has Jan Martinborough break the Le Mans lap record during his final leg of the race, which didn't happen. The movie gives him a lap record timed below three minutes and 15 seconds. This is over two seconds faster than the current Le Mans lap record, and three seconds faster than the established record when Jan raced Le Mans in real life. While the movie streaks heavily off of what really happened a decade ago, it still showcases the hardships a professional racer faces in his career, and the use of overdramatizing events is nothing new for Hollywood. It's a fun watch, but if you want the real story, now you know it.