June 11 1955 will go down as one of the darkest days in motorsport history. It is also a day that changed car racing forever. Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar and defending champions Ferrari were all vying for the prestigious 24 hours of Le Mans trophy; between them, they had won the last four editions. With a line-up that included Formula 1 legends Juan-Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss, Mercedes-Benz believed they had the package to challenge Ferrari and win again.
The stage was set for an exciting battle.
Three hours into the race, a collision occurred between Mercedes-Benz's support driver Pierre Levegh and Austin-Healey's Lance Macklin. The high speed crash sent the Benz out of control, with Levegh being thrown out of his car and landing on his skull, killing him instantly. The Benz continued disintegrating, sending hot debris into the tightly-packed crowd. The severed engine hood acted as a guillotine, decapitating many spectators who had no time to react. Mercedes-Benz's use of magnesium alloy in their body also played a part, with many fans suffering grave injuries due to the intense heat from the scorched powerplant.
All this is not depicted in the film. What we see, however, are the delicate, tense moments between the team principal Alfred Neubauer and Levegh's driving partner John Fitch. The visibly-distraught Fitch appeals to Neubauer to withdraw from the race, to which Neubauer initially refuses outright. The visuals after the crash are stark: the atmosphere is a deep indigo while the soaring flames are scarlet red-and-gray. The cars themselves appear to lose a bit of their sheen: the sleek silver of Mercedes dulls, the bright red of Ferrari overshadowed by the flames. Eventually, sense prevails over Neubauer and he withdraws his team from the race. As morning dawns and the horrific tragedy (eighty-odd dead and hundreds more hurt) sinks in, Fitch and Neubauer exchange a quiet glance, as the remaining Silver Arrow Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR is hoisted onto a truck and Fitch departs in a car.
The animation in this short is elegant, poetic and understated. The drama is palpable, some scenes are so contrasting they are almost painful to watch - case in point, the camera pans the section of crowd that received the brunt of the Benz's impact while there is a carousel in the background, still running with bright lights. The choice of colors deserves mention as well and the score adds a sense of gravitas to it. The epilogue mentions the legacy, with Mercedes-Benz quitting racing altogether while Fitch embarks on a journey to improve safety in motorsport and every-day driving.
Do watch it if you can, one of the best fifteen minutes of your life!
The stage was set for an exciting battle.
Three hours into the race, a collision occurred between Mercedes-Benz's support driver Pierre Levegh and Austin-Healey's Lance Macklin. The high speed crash sent the Benz out of control, with Levegh being thrown out of his car and landing on his skull, killing him instantly. The Benz continued disintegrating, sending hot debris into the tightly-packed crowd. The severed engine hood acted as a guillotine, decapitating many spectators who had no time to react. Mercedes-Benz's use of magnesium alloy in their body also played a part, with many fans suffering grave injuries due to the intense heat from the scorched powerplant.
All this is not depicted in the film. What we see, however, are the delicate, tense moments between the team principal Alfred Neubauer and Levegh's driving partner John Fitch. The visibly-distraught Fitch appeals to Neubauer to withdraw from the race, to which Neubauer initially refuses outright. The visuals after the crash are stark: the atmosphere is a deep indigo while the soaring flames are scarlet red-and-gray. The cars themselves appear to lose a bit of their sheen: the sleek silver of Mercedes dulls, the bright red of Ferrari overshadowed by the flames. Eventually, sense prevails over Neubauer and he withdraws his team from the race. As morning dawns and the horrific tragedy (eighty-odd dead and hundreds more hurt) sinks in, Fitch and Neubauer exchange a quiet glance, as the remaining Silver Arrow Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR is hoisted onto a truck and Fitch departs in a car.
The animation in this short is elegant, poetic and understated. The drama is palpable, some scenes are so contrasting they are almost painful to watch - case in point, the camera pans the section of crowd that received the brunt of the Benz's impact while there is a carousel in the background, still running with bright lights. The choice of colors deserves mention as well and the score adds a sense of gravitas to it. The epilogue mentions the legacy, with Mercedes-Benz quitting racing altogether while Fitch embarks on a journey to improve safety in motorsport and every-day driving.
Do watch it if you can, one of the best fifteen minutes of your life!