F1

by Philip Price

Photo: Apple Original Films

Director: Joseph Kosinski 
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris & Javier Bardem 
Rated: PG-13 (language & action)
Runtime: 2 hours & 35 minutes

 
“So, what is it about?” A couple of different characters pose this question to Brad Pitt’s Sonny Hayes - a washed-up Formula One driver who lost his shot at greatness at a young age and never found his way back - to emphasize an absolutely crucial character trait necessary to justify why a 60 year-old might be afforded the biggest stage in racing, but if we apply it to the film itself the answer is pretty straightforward: “F1: The Movie” is a comeback story, an underdog tale, and a redemption arc that we’ve seen play out a thousand times before cloaked in a world myself and no one I personally know cares anything about. While this might not be true of most viewers around the globe, this lack of insight makes the goals of the film immediately striking to the uninitiated such as myself: immerse viewers in the world to the point they’re invested in the story it’s telling while successfully executing a fresh take on how that story is told. 
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From a storytelling standpoint, this is as simple as old school versus new, an old pro coming back into the fold of a young man’s game to show the “soft” rookie how it is done. Director Joseph Kosinski (the king of legacy sequels featuring colons) gives us everything we could want in such a sports drama from flashbacks to the aforementioned turning point in our protagonists life in a hurried, intercut fashion forcing us to piece much of it together ourselves down to the inevitable third act twist that presents an unforeseen challenge to the core team just as they’ve learned to put aside their differences and come together for the greater good. While much of the plotting in “F1” can be seen coming from a mile away, what’s most invigorating is that it doesn’t try to upend expectations, but in fact, Ehren Kruger’s screenplay wholeheartedly embraces them with Kosinski crafting his film to excel through every one of them.

I also assumed Kosinski’s work on “Top Gun: Maverick” would fully equip him to, if nothing else, give the racing sequences such an edge they would inherently elevate the rest of the film no matter how standard it might turn out to be and while the races themselves are undoubtedly highlights and arguably the reason to seek the movie out in the largest presentation/format possible the stuff in between is not so easily dismissed. It’s easy to say the film is about an F1 driver coming out of retirement to mentor another up-and-coming driver, but of course, that’s not what the film is really about. For what appears to be relatively uncomplicated, there are several readings one could apply whether dealing in the Brad Pitt of it all or different industry analogies but what it’s truly tackling is drive, if you will - wanting something so bad, getting so close to a goal you can taste it, then asking if one becomes bitter to the rest of the world when it doesn’t work out and how long does one maintain such allusions of grandeur? Fighting to resist the narcissistic feeling that the whole world is against you, wondering why we do these things to ourselves, why others are blessed to live your dreams when they don’t seem to care as much, want it as bad, or - and most importantly - deserve it as much? It doesn’t make sense and worse, even when you try to walk away it’s impossible to fully extinguish the hope that one day the opportunity to see the life you know you deserve pan out will show itself; that you’ll one day be able to feel the feeling you’ve been chasing since the first time you experienced it, if only for one more time. How long do you hold onto that dream? There is a point at which it becomes desperate, right? The character of Hayes is self-aware enough to understand such perceptions and the film is smart enough to know the literal win isn’t the only thing Hayes is chasing in his quest for fulfillment but it also shows us that for someone born of such grit, determination, and belief in one’s self that, should the opportunity present itself, they’ll never be able to give up on that dream - even if it kills them. 

It's worth adding that, as mentioned, I know nothing of the world, the rules, the culture, or the necessary skill it takes to compete in Formula One and while this movie could be entirely blasphemous for fans of the sport it’s hard to imagine this being the case given how fascinated the film is with the lifestyle of those inside this environment. The science of what it takes to make the cars work to their maximum efficiency, the amount of money and business behind it, the “thrill of fighting to the death for a tenth of a second” – all of it could equally be seen as an allegory for the movie business. So much time, so many resources, individuals who dedicate their lives to the craft, and to what end and for what reason? Spending untold amounts of time and money to find a second here or there feels akin to doing so to create two hours of material meant to entertain. We do these things, create these challenges and obstacles in our lives, to obtain an ambition we for one reason or another - cannot let go of - and so for Hollywood to have created this film, a throwback of cinema’s glory days starring it’s golden boy about the old guard coming in to revitalize the practices of the modern ways of thinking feels as synergistic as the cooperation between the corporations that came together to create this most exhilarating of commercials.  

Speaking of feelings impossible to ignore, Pitt is one hell of an attractive and charismatic dude. We’re not 10 minutes into the film before we’ve been treated to how methodical his Sonny Hayes is, how strategic he can be, or how much of a wrench he is being thrown back into this world three decades after he was forced to walk away, he will in fact prove to be. From the way he races to the way he conducts himself, none of it necessarily jives with the current status quo or mentality of the people at the top. Yes, “F1” is a Jerry Bruckheimer-produced, mega-action, summer blockbuster that puts you in the car with Pitt on some of the fastest Formula One tracks around the world featuring a pounding Hans Zimmer score, a montage when you need it, and just the right amount of double-crossing internal turmoil and corporate espionage to keep things lively and in line with the traditions of and expectations for movies of this ilk. If that’s all you need, this delivers in spades. To its credit, though, by being hellbent on making a particular kind of film, “F1” more or less improves upon each trope it tackles. 

Fortunately, this also makes way for some key differences in the “formula,” one of the best being that while we are expected to not only believe Sonny’s old tricks might still work in the world of professional racing but more so that this world needs to be reminded of Sonny’s brand of cocky, “swan”-ness that breeds the type of competition that’s been lost among modern drivers and all the “noise” continually echoing around them in their publicity bubbles. Sonny hasn’t been given a damn thing. Yes, the notion of time and experience being on Sonny’s side no matter how much innovation has taken place in the generations that have come after is one we’ve seen time and time again, but Sonny isn’t inherently blessed with such knowledge and skill, he’s no racing savant, he puts in the work and the way Kosinski and co. intently illustrate how Sonny does so, from reading manuals late at night to running on the track to get a feel for the terrain down to being able to listen, take criticism, and integrate said criticism into his strategy is a refreshing turn of the key while Pitt still maintains an aura that allows Sonny, through his own vision and inability to believe he doesn’t know best, to rise to the occasion every time his superiors push back. 

My sense is present day criticism might be too quick to dismiss “F1” as too formulaic (pun intended) for its own good, but I cannot help but think the formula will work in favor of the film eventually. Despite the predictability, despite audiences knowing where this road will take them as they pass all the recognizable milestones of the genre along the way, none of it means it’s *not* what people want to see. The moment Kerry Condon (effortlessly charming) shows up we know the romantic arc she and Pitt’s Sonny are destined to fulfill. The same is true of Damson Idris’ Joshua Pearce, the hotshot rookie so self-centered and arrogant it’s aggravating at times, who will eventually put aside his differences with Sonny and come to appreciate his personal brand of mentorship in order to form the winning partnership necessary to save Javier Bardem’s ass. Audiences are aware of how archetypal these characters are, but Condon, Idris, Bardem and especially Pitt (Sarah Niles and Simon Kunz are also pleasant surprises) offer enough acuity to alleviate the clichés. The final lap of the final race featured in the film delivers genuine full body chills as the previous 150 minutes has been so nimbly edited, paced and constructed to perfectly set the viewer up for this moment and all it is meant to induce. It checks all the boxes, sure, but it sustains itself and successfully uses said formula to deliver what is a familiar yet satisfying experience in the present thanks to its handsome mounting and carving out of enough distinguishing facets in its otherwise boilerplate set of story and characters that it will inevitably serve as comfort when revisited down the road.