The panoramic spectacle of Formula 1 is put to the brilliant and thrilling test in Joseph Kosinski's "F1," a flawless film that, in its most fascinating racing scenes, verges on the splendor of high speed.
Kosinski, who last endeavored to put viewers in the seat of a fighter jet in "Top Gun: Maverick," has moved into the open cockpits of Formula 1 with the same love, if not an absolute need, for speed. Much of the same team has returned. Jerry Bruckheimer produces. Ehren Kruger, co-writer of "Maverick," takes sole credit. Hans Zimmer, formerly co-composer, is responsible for the powerful score.
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Writers: Joseph Kosinski, Ehren Kruger
Stars: Brad Pitt, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
And again, our central figure is an older, high-flying cowboy, knocked off his feet in an ultramodern, gas-guzzling vehicle to teach younger generations about old-school ingenuity and, perhaps, the enduring appeal of denim.
But while Tom Cruise is a particularly cutting-edge action star, Brad Pitt, who plays driving addict Sonny Hayes in "F1," has always had a more captivating and serene presence. Think of the way he so calmly and nonchalantly faces off against Bruce Lee in Quentin Tarantino's "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood." In the opening scene of "F1," he's sleeping in a van with headphones on when someone wakes him up. He splashes water on his face and takes a few steps toward the Daytona oval, where he quickly climbs into his team car, in the middle of a 24-hour race. Pitt goes from 0 to 290 km/h in one minute.
Sonny, a Formula 1 phenomenon who crashed his Formula 1 career decades ago and has since raced any vehicle, even a taxi, behind the wheel, is approached by an old friend, Rubén Cervantes (Javier Bardem), to join his failing F1 team, APX. Sonny initially rejects the offer, but of course, he joins, and "F1" takes off with a bang.
The title sequence, exquisitely timed to the syncopated rhythms of Zimmer's score, is a dazzling introduction. Promising rookie driver Noah Pearce (Damson Idris) is taking a practice lap, but Kosinski, with his camera skillfully moving in and out of the cockpit, seizes the moment to immerse us in the high-tech world of Formula 1, where every inch of the car is connected to digital sensors monitored by a vigilant team. Here, this includes technical director Kate McKenna (Kerry Condon) and team principal Kaspar Molinski (Kim Bodnia).
Verisimilitude is obviously important to the filmmakers, who imbue this film, with Formula 1's blessing, with all the operational sophistication and global spectacle of the sport. That Apple, the production company, has opted for such an expensive summer movie about Formula 1 is a testament to the rise in popularity of a sport that was once fairly exclusive to the United States, and to the domino effect of both the Netflix series "Formula 1: Drive to Survive" and acclaimed driver Lewis Hamilton, executive producer of "F1."
Whether "F1" will appeal to the most die-hard fans of the circuit, I'll leave to the most passionate. But what I can say with certainty is that Claudio Miranda knows how to make it. The director of photography, who has filmed all of Kosinski's films, as well as such marvels as Ang Lee's "Life of Pi," brings Formula 1 to life vividly and viscerally. When "F1" heads to the big races, Miranda always simultaneously captures the cars rocketing off the asphalt, while framing them with the awe-inspiring spectacle of a circuit like the UK's legendary Silverstone Circuit.
A relationship develops, but "F1" struggles to take its characters off the starting grid, keeping them close to initial clichés. The actress who, more than anyone, maintains the momentum is Condon, playing an aerodynamics specialist whose connection with Pitt's Sonny is immediate. As she did between another pair of stubborn men in "The Banshees of Inisherin," Condon is a torrent of naturalism.
If there's anything that holds "F1" back from reaching its full potential, it's its insistence that its characters constantly express Sonny's motivations. The same is true on the track, where broadcast commentary narrates virtually every moment of the drama. This may be necessary for a sport where crucial hot-tire strategies and pit stop timing aren't entirely commonplace. But the best auto racing movies, from "Grand Prix" to "Senna" to "Ferrari," know when to rely solely on the roar of an engine.
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