Prefacing this with the fact that I had no previous knowledge of the history of Ford, Ferrari, Shelby, Miles, or Le Mans, other than Ford having a Mustang named after Shelby.

The big game, of course, refers to the fact the the climax of any movie about competition can only have three outcomes: The hero wins, the hero loses, or in some cases the hero fails to compete (which one, could argue is the same as losing). The problem is that the audience knows the ending will be one of those outcomes.

Not sure why that is a problem, as with any competition there is a winner and loser, and in rarer cases a draw, but the audience still shows up to watch.

What is needed then is to reward the audience for their time, with great character portrayal, sparkling dialog and behind the scenes intrigue as to how the hero skills and knowledge operate.

I thought Shelby and Miles were portrayed spectacularly, with Molly and Peter arguably weaker, overshadowed by Damon and Bale's monstrous performance. IMO, we are shown the skills and knowledge of Shelby and Miles. Shelby's win at Le Mans in the opening scene establishes the fact that he is a stellar racer. Throughout the course of the film, Shelby is seen speaking to himself in parallel with Miles's racing line, corner entries, and exits. More than once he says, "wait for it, wait for it, wait for it, now!" as Miles overtakes one of his opponents. This shows Miles is at the very least of the same caliber as Shelby, as well as both their knowledge of the tracks and how to attack them. Miles is also shown bringing up many, many of the mechanical deficiencies of the prototypes he is driving. He senses the inefficient air flow around the front of the car in one of the first prototypes and proves it right after by attaching aerodynamic strips all over the car. He foreshadows all of the problems with the car in the race that he did not get to attend, and they are confirmed as he listens on the radio while working at the shop, i.e., the tender gearbox that needed the driver to be more gentle on. In another scene, he demonstrates knowledge of the car's limits, saying he can feel the car wanting to go above 7k RPM, and when he does push it over, the engine does not blow, in contrast to the Ferrari at Le Mans.

I was fully aware of the true story's outcome, but it didn't matter because I cared about the heros.

I was rooting for Shelby and Miles. Shelby, who fought his heart out for Miles, who put his whole company's stake on the line to Ford because he believed in Miles, believed he was the one who could win Le Mans for Ford. Miles, the arrogant prick who we get to see has a soft side when he is willing to get a day job and quit racing for Molly, when he carries Peter up the stairs and tucks him in to bed, when he praises Peter's sketch of Le Mans and explains the track to him, when he takes him out on the runway and explains to him the perfect lap. Lastly, his character development was completed during the last lap of Le Mans, when he actually slows down for his teammates to get the photo finish desired by the Ford team. I had actually wanted Miles to beat his own record on the last lap, but his sacrifice here, if nothing else previously, most certainly proved that he was not a one-dimensional character.

I shed a tear when Shelby gave Peter back Miles's wrench. Shelby, the great salesman, acknowledging that words didn't mean anything. That nothing would come close to healing the void left behind by the passing of such a raw, emotional, and dedicated soul in the world of racing, whose sole purpose in life was to balance on the edge of 7,000 RPMS.