He’s the star of such Hollywood blockbusters as Munich and Troy but it’s clear from this documentary that Eric Bana’s mind is generally elsewhere.
And that place is the garage back at his childhood family home in Australia where his first car is lovingly retained.
That car - a Ford GT Falcon Coupe - remains at the heart of who Bana is, the circle around which his friends gather to tinker, restore and cherish, both the car and their schooldays’ friendship.
The film follows Bana, who is producer and director here, as he has “The Beast” restored to the car he always believed it could become, in a labour-intensive job which it probably needs film star wages to achieve.
The dream is to finish the Targa rally in Tasmania, a five-day endurance test which Bana and his co-driver had first attempted a decade before.
Bana’s passion for his car is evident and his desire to show he’s still a normal bloke with his old mates is laudable.
But I don’t think we need Jeremy Clarkson and Dr Phil interweaved to explain how a man can have a real connection with a piece of steel.
And sadly most of his mates really don’t carry the charisma where you want to find out more about their relationship with Bana, something which would have moved the film to a higher level.
Enjoyable but could have been a lot beter.
The Best of Never Mind the Buzzcocks (18)
Relive the funniest, rudest and most controversial moments from the last three series of the enduring music panel show presented by Simon Amstell. It features excerpts just too saucy for broadcast on terrestrial television, such as Russell Brand’s stint as guest captain, which was pulled after his suspension from the BBC.
Meerkats - the Movie (PG)
So it all came down to this. The man behind Cool Hand Luke and Butch Cassidy has his final role here, a documentary about some mongoose-type creatures fighting for survival on the arid plains of the Kalahari desert.
Yes, Paul Newman is narrator of this child-friendly piece and sadly it’s one of the most annoying things about it.
It’s hardly Newman’s fault but the over-dramatised script he’s asked to deliver rather misses the mark. Personification is of course a regular device of natural world film-makers but here it’s taken to extremes as we follow baby Kolo and his battle for survival.
But some of the camera shots, particular underground in the meerkat tunnels, are quite extraordinary as the family fight off snakes, eagles and even a lion.
It’s clear some of the sequences have been pieced together later but James Honeyborne’s film does manage to capture the drama of the daily fight for survival despite little natural science.
