★★★★ - EMPIRE
- Joseph Kosinski has done it again. F1 combines unparalleled access, pioneering filmmaking and moving redemption arcs to deliver an exhilarating cinematic experience. -
Remember Top Gun: Maverick? Joseph Kosinski’s big-screen triumph of 2022, which saw Tom Cruise and his co-stars actually flying in planes? With F1, Kosinski returns to capturing vehicular action with a level of commitment never seen before. This time, it’s the world’s fastest cars, and he’s swapped out one megawatt movie star in Cruise for another: Brad Pitt.
Pitt is Sonny Hayes, a grouchy gambler who lives in his van and, after a horrifying accident crushed his dreams, constantly moves from one motorsport to another, addicted to the rush of a race. Old friend Ruben (a charming Javier Bardem), owner of struggling F1 team APXGP, offers Sonny a seat in the hopes of a win — but with negative press, a “shitbox” of a car, and ongoing clashes of ego with talented rookie teammate Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris) to contend with, it’s not going to be easy.
The filmmakers make it look easy, though. Every second of racing action in F1 is truly immersive. Groundbreaking new, smaller IMAX cameras sit on the cars, putting you so close to the track you can practically smell the asphalt. Both Pitt and Idris are genuinely behind the wheel most of the time (of modified Formula 2 cars, but still), and shooting at real-life Grands Prix submerges F1 in total authenticity (complete with cameos from drivers, engineers and more). Lewis Hamilton is a producer, and his input into the script means the twists and turns of each race feel, yes, dramatised, but also totally conceivable. Your heart will pound as Sonny and Joshua fight for a place on the podium, with every move rooted in character as well as spectacle.
While the scenes outside of the race sequences verge on formulaic, the chemistry between Pitt and those around him — especially Idris, Bardem and the excellent Kerry Condon as APXGP’s steely technical director, Kate — is strong. Sonny’s relentless wise-cracking occasionally wears a little thin, but there are enough moments of vulnerability to balance them out. Idris more than holds his own in what is sure to be a breakout role for him: a striking screen presence, his Joshua manages to be cocky, charming and complex all at once.
For Formula 1 fans, the sheer accuracy of F1’s depiction of the sport will be giddy-making; for agnostics, the races may feel a touch repetitive, and the level of detail may go over some heads. But whatever your relationship to the sport, the magnitude of what Kosinski and co have accomplished is undeniable. Fasten your seatbelts, and see this on the biggest screen you possibly can.
- Sophie Butcher, EMPIRE
F1 is now playing at Light House Cinema!