Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt), a Formula One driver who raced in the 1990s, has a horrible crash, forcing him to retire from Formula One and start racing in other disciplines. A Formula One team owner and friend, Ruben (Javier Bardem), contacts Hayes and asks him to come out of retirement to mentor rookie prodigy Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris) for the Apex Grand Prix team.
I think Formula One is one of the most boring sports there is, despite the inherent dangers, but that does not mean that a good movie cannot be made about it. I am a big fan of John Frankenheimer’s Grand Prix from 1966, for example and Rush (2013) is also really good, whereas the two sports I like the most can only muster two decent films between them (Fever Pitch (1997) and Wondrous Oblivion (2003)).
F1, despite some reservations, should be enjoyed by fans and sceptics alike. It is old fashioned big budget entertainment that is not part of an existing franchise or based on a comic or video game. Pitt is one of the last great movie stars, and he shines here, in a way that Steve McQueen could have done if this was made in the 1960s.
Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski again shows he has the chops to delivery thrilling action scenes and there are fine performances from Idris, Bardem and especially Kerry Condon as the team’s lead engineer who shares a definite chemistry with Pitt.
As for the reservations, at times it feels like an advert for the sport, with all the corporate branding and sponsorship but I guess that is the price for access. Also, there are some very cheesy moments, fuelled by Hans Zimmer’s score and the incessant commentary during the races over explains what is happening.
F1 has been made by Apple Studios and I assume will be on Apple TV+ fairly soon.
Don’t wait for that though as it should be seen, and enjoyed, on the biggest screen possible.
Rating: 7 out of 10