Rating: 8/10
“F1: The Movie” is a high-adrenaline, 2.5-hour ride into the heart of Formula 1, directed by Joseph Kosinski, the filmmaker behind “Top Gun: Maverick”. With stunning visuals, high-octane racing and Hans Zimmer’s breathtaking score, it cements itself as another instant summertime classic.
“F1: The Movie” follows Brad Pitt’s Sonny Hayes, an old racing driver who returns to Formula 1 after a three-decade absence. Sonny is paired with a young and arrogant rookie — Damson Idris’ Joshua Pearce — who he often clashes with.
The film strikes a near-perfect balance between drama and full-throttle racing. It starts with Hayes driving a Porsche 911 GT3 at the “24 Hours of Daytona” and, when the sound of the car’s engine revving hits your ears for the first time, you know you are in for a ride.
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Pitt, Idris and Javier Bardem as Hayes, Pearce and Ruben Cervantes deliver standout performances, stealing the spotlight whenever they appear on the screen. Kerry Condon’s Kate McKenna brings a compelling screen presence, even if the writing around her character falters.
The movie’s rich, detailed engine sounds draw in the audience. Every upshift, downshift and braking point is captured with thrilling clarity, making this a movie that will fascinate racing fans.
But more importantly, this movie is an engineering marvel. The movie’s production team worked with Mercedes AMG to modify six Formula 2 cars to create the stunning and real-looking “APXGP” cars. They then worked with Apple to create special camera mounts to film the gorgeous on-board sequences in the movie.
The creative team’s commitment didn’t end here. A large chunk of the movie was filmed on real Formula 1 race tracks during actual race weekends. With the cooperation of the sport and its governing body, they were allowed to film scenes on the track alongside current drivers. They also filmed scenes on the grid — during national anthems and race build-ups.
Kosinski and his creative team worked with producer, Formula 1 driver and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton to ensure racing scenes were as accurate as possible. Despite this attention to detail, there is still a lot of creative liberty taken throughout the movie, which may annoy hardcore Formula 1 fans.
One flawed area of the film is female representation. While Condon’s McKenna and Callie Cookie’s Jodie, a pit crew member, are important characters, they lack depth. Given Formula 1’s history of underrepresenting women, this was a missed opportunity to present stronger, more developed roles.
Pitt brings his signature charm, masterfully bringing Hayes, an old-school driver, to life. Right from the beginning, you find yourself rooting for him, cheering at every overtake he makes and getting disappointed when he doesn’t do well.
Hayes is a classic hero — flawed, but fiercely driven. He makes mistakes and accepts them. He is an almighty but mortal protagonist.
Bardem invokes magic on the screen with his portrayal of the owner of APXGP, Cervantes. He is an electrifying presence. Some might even argue that he is a more charismatic character than Hayes. Bardem plays a stressed yet excited businessman to perfection and lifts the movie to a whole new level.
APXGP’s second driver, Pearce, is a textbook arrogant rookie. Idris becomes Joshua in this film. He lives and breathes a young driver who thinks he can battle the world because he is just that good. Pearce’s character has a satisfying, well-written arc. If viewers didn’t like him in the first hour of the film, they will most definitely fall in love in the second half.
Beyond acting, the background score and cinematography are breathtaking. This is an exceptionally well-directed film. Kosinski’s signature openings and closings bring the movie full circle. Character arcs are sharply written, and the racing scenes explode with life.
Overall, “F1: The Movie” is a 2.5-hour ride that takes you around the Formula 1 calendar at 200 miles per hour. A visually immersive, high-speed ride filmed for IMAX — the movie of the summer is here.
