Ever wondered what really happens in the garage during the 24 Hours of Le Mans?

With the 24 Hours of Le Mans just run to its thrilling conclusion, it seems like a good way to kick off Drive Cult's new feature series: Drive Cult Film Club.

In this features we'll review car-based movies; not season reviews or event DVDs, just movies about cars. We'll look at the movie itself, what's in there for the car enthusiast, then any special features if it's a DVD/Blu-ray presentation. So, given that it's Le Mans weekend, let's start with Truth in 24.

Along with the Indy 500 and the Monaco Grand Prix, the 24 Hours of Le Mans is one of the most well-known motor races in the world. While it was immortalised by the Steve McQueen film of the same name, it’s hard to grasp the scope of the event. On top of that, the multi-year dominance of a small number of manufacturers in the top prototype LMP1 class has further added to the cult of Le Mans, with the whole focus of a team pointed squarely at a single event.

Truth in 24 is a documentary following the Audi Sport team's Le Mans program in 2008. After two hugely successful years in their revolutionary diesel-engined R10 car, Audi were aiming to make it a hat-trick of victories. However, this time they have a new and very fast opponent, Peugeot. From their early races in the America Le Mans Series, through to the Test Day in La Sarthe and finally the 24 Hours of Le Mans itself, the film follows Audi as they fight for victory in the toughest race of them all.

The documentary follows all three Audi cars entered into the race, but pays most attention to the #2 car and its drivers Tom Kristensen, Rinaldo 'Dindo' Capello and Allan McNish. There are extensive interviews with the drivers, and McNish in particular stands out as being unusually eloquent and articulate for a racing driver. His commentary over a lap of the Le Mans circuit is a highlight of the film, really putting you in the cockpit with the driver.

Fittingly for such a team event, the engineers also take centre stage and none more so than the chief engineer of the Capello/Kristensen/McNish car, Howden Haynes. Haynes, or 'H' as he's known, co-ordinates the garage mechanics and strategy in what would probably be a five person job for an F1 team! Haynes provides invaluable and candid insight into the job of running - and winning - a 24-hour race and in many ways is the heart of the film. Amazingly, approval to put a mic on 'H' Haynes for the full 24 hours only came down twenty minutes before the start of the race; it's hard to imagine the film being as effective without his input.

H also has one of the standout moments in the film when arguing with his driver Kristensen about tyre strategy. We won't spoil the punchline, but suffice to say that the decision is instrumental in the outcome of the race.

What makes Truth in 24 so unusual is that it was filmed by American company NFL Films. For those not up on their American Football, many years ago the NFL started a unit who visited games at all of the league’s teams and shot the action with movie cameras rather than TV ones. If you ever watch a montage of classic American Football you’ll always be able to pick out their clips, since they’re usually in ultra-slow motion and look very different to the standard TV picture.

The test with any documentary is whether it appeals to those without a standing interest in the subject. NFL Films had never even attended a motor race before, let alone filmed one, but their outsider's perspective has allowed them to construct a documentary that appeals to both fans and non-fans alike, and their ability to tell a story is unmatched - and the 2008 Le Mans turned out to be a story that Hollywood would be proud of. The cinematic camerawork along with the dramatic music and narration from action movie star Jason Statham give it a very mainstream feel, but with enough technical detail to keep the car fans entertained and informed.

Unsurprisingly, the film does feel a little like an Audi promotional movie, but the filmmakers provide just enough balance and general interest to prevent it from becoming a 100-minute car advert. Given the amount of time devoted to Audi, the Peugeot battle is clearly intended to be the fight that gives the film tension, but far more comes from the drive within the team to keep going and to fight for the win.

The Drive Cult verdict

Film: 4/5

A great watch for any motorsport fan even if you’ve never followed endurance racing before. However, the presentation is heavily weighted towards Audi and very little time is given to non-Audi/LMP1 events during the race.

Cars: 5/5

OK, so it’s mostly the Audi R10 LMP1 diesel, but you can’t complain about one of the most influential racing cars of modern times.

Normally at this point I’d mention DVD extras, but there aren’t any. There are some DVD copies out there if you’re an Audi collector, but Audi are giving away Truth in 24 on the US iTunes Store. It's well worth the download if you have a US Store account, and an interesting way to spend 100 minutes.

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