Film Review - F1
The clichés come thick and fast in Joseph Kosinksi's racing spectacle, but they're still entertaining, and Brad Pitt's charm is undeniable
Recently, I had a debate with a fellow film enthusiast concerning the correct title for Ballerina. It appeared in promotional material as From the World of John Wick: Ballerina but onscreen as simply Ballerina. My rule of thumb has always been whatever is onscreen is the title. That gets a little annoying when you have to say X2 (2003) instead of X-Men 2, but that’s what is onscreen, so that’s the title. Then again, I’ve never been able to understand why anyone would think adding “The Movie” afterwards constitutes a valid title. For instance, Superman (1978) is referred to in all publicity, except onscreen, as Superman: The Movie. Well, thank you for clarifying. I thought you meant Superman: The Brechtian Stage Play. In the case of F1, a new racing drama about Formula 1, again, it’s been invariably marketed as F1: The Movie. I’m glad they specified, as I almost drove to the Silverstone track in Oxfordshire to watch.
There’s plenty of IMAX-sized spectacle in F1, as one might expect from Top Gun Maverick (2022) director Joseph Kosinski. It also borrows liberally from another Jerry Bruckheimer production, Days of Thunder (1990), along with just about every other racing film you’ve ever seen, including Le Mans (1971), Cars (2006), Rush (2013), Gran Turismo (2023), and Le Mans ‘66 (2019). The latter is known in America as Ford vs Ferrari, presumably in case viewers think it’s a sequel to the previous 65 films in the Le Mans Cinematic Universe. But come now, we’ve already had quite enough pontificating over titles for one film review.
The plot here involves has-been, or, as one character uncharitably puts it, “never-was” American racing driver Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt). He’s slumming it in his van, drifting from racing event to racing event, winning at Daytona in the opening scene. He’s immediately established as a maverick with the obligatory troubled past (underwritten, so this doesn’t have to deal with anything too emotionally knotty). A crash circa the early 1990s led to his departure from Formula 1 racing, but now, an old friend, Ruben Cervantes (Javier Bardem), is begging him to return so he can dig him out of a financial hole.
Sonny reluctantly agrees, joining Ruben’s bottom-of-the-table racing team APX. Here, he butts heads and turns heads, so to speak, with promising but inexperienced young rookie Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris) and the technical director Kate McKenna (Kerry Kondon), respectively. It doesn’t take a genius to see where either subplot is heading. Or where Sonny’s character arc will end up. Along the way, Ehren Kruger’s screenplay delivers a full checklist of racing movie clichés with plenty of macho nonsense. But sometimes, clichés are enjoyable, and this is rather entertaining macho nonsense.
Key to the film’s success is Brad Pitt’s effortlessly charming central performance. He’s ably supported by the rest of the cast, which also includes Kim Bodnia, Shea Whigham, and Sarah Niles. It’s worth adding that various Formula 1 drivers and personnel appear as themselves during race scenes (the film was shot during the 2023 and 2024 seasons, apparently). I’ve no interest in motor racing (or sport in general), so I didn’t realise this until afterwards when I researched the film.
It’s directed with suitable flair, with all the components meshing well. Hans Zimmer’s score and the well-chosen pop soundtrack are another bonus. It’s perhaps a mite overlong at 156 minutes, and it isn’t exactly digging deep to find profound insights into the human condition. Then again, I daresay it delivers exactly what most audiences want from this sort of film with popcorn blockbuster aplomb. For that reason, F1 is worth a look for those who enjoy the deafening roar of engines, the smell of burning rubber, and pedal-to-the-metal thrills fuelled by the undeniable movie star power of Brad Pitt.
(Originally published at Medium.)
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Would only watch this because of Pitt, who becomes ever more watchable as he ages. A bit like our own Ralph Fiennes, as we’ve recently sparred about elsewhere, Simon…ha-ha!
But motor racing films have never done it for me, even those featuring greater stars than Pitt, such as James Garner, Steve McQueen, and the peerless Paul Newman. Rather like watching someone working at a computer keyboard on the big screen, I just don’t think watching someone driving a car is particularly captivating-though I’ll grant a car chase is substantially more exciting than tapping a keyboard!
So, I might watch it, but…and here in Germany, F1-the Race, not the Movie, is tediously a big thing here, I’m not keen on the idea!
And you’re dead right about the titles malarkey. But then, we appear to be getting stupider by the day, and Hollywood has always been at the leading edge of stupidity!