A review of the new blockbuster movie “F1”
This thrilling movie is the most authentic and immersive presentation of motor car racing that you’ll have every seen. You should view it on largest screen that you can and I was fortunate enough to see it in IMAX on the biggest screen in Britain.
If the ‘sitting in the seat’ view, while you hurl around at amazing speeds with a thumping soundtrack, seems familiar, then that’s no coincidence: the director is Joseph Kosinki, the theme music is from Hans Zimmer, and one of the producers is Jerry Bruckheimer, all of whom performed the same roles on the wonderful “Top Gun: Maverick”.
The storyline is pretty formulaic: an old timer with a passion for risk, dubbed “the greatest that never was” (Brad Pitt) is recruited by a long-time friend (Javier Bardem) to tutor a talented but inexperienced rookie (Damson Iris) and, along the way, an attractive technical director (Kerry Condon) provides both winning talent and love interest. These are very watchable stars with Pitt especially perfectly cast.
Racing superstar Lewis Hamilton is co-producer and many other drivers and personalities of the sport make brief appearances. Partly shot during real Grand Prix races around the world, everything visible feels so real, even if the narrative could have come from a comic.
As someone who knows nothing about Formula One, I was struck by the incredible amount of technology in the cars and the supporting infrastructure and by the physicality of the training regime and the actual driving.
My friend Tim, who was with me, knows a great deal about the sport and he attested to its verisimilitude and recognised many of the cameo characters. The film is entertainment on a grand scale and a huge success.