F1: The Movie Review – Wonderboy

Introduction

You’re probably going to see a bunch of reviews describing F1: The Movie as predictable and formulaic. Many will call it predictable, but that’s lazy because sports movies are always predictable. Others will call it formulaic, which is also lazy (all movies are formulaic), but also because they can’t resist bad puns (in case you don’t know, the F in F1 stands for formula). Ironically, F1 is formulaic. I don’t say that because it follows the standard racing movie formula (and it does). I say it because it’s The Natural on wheels.

Synopsis

In F1: The Movie, young Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) was going to be the best there ever was. After showing off a bit, he suffers a near-fatal, life-changing injury. For a couple of decades after that, he disappears, occasionally racing in random places, and finally gets another shot at the biggest stage in racing – the F1 circuit with the APX team. Once there, he has to contend with the resident and younger star Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris).

As the season progresses, Hayes wins over the fans and the racing team while also having to contend with a meddlesome journalist. In addition, one of the team’s owners wants to force another owner, Ruben Cervantes (Javier Bardem), to sell his stake (as long as they don’t win a race, the sale will happen).

Near the end, and riding high, Hayes suffers another injury that appears to be his permanent end, but he grits his teeth and performs in the final race. Sound familiar? Would you be surprised at all if it were revealed that Hayes scratched a lightning bolt on the side of his car and named it Wonderboy? Before you scream SPOILERS!! at me, I did warn you in the first paragraph. And unless you’ve never seen a sports movie, don’t act surprised.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CT2_P2DZBR0

Analysis

Sports movies are always about underdogs. They always feature someone being redeemed. They always feature some form of rival. And, they nearly always end with the underdog winning unless it’s Rocky Balboa’s first title fight or the Mystery, Alaska hockey team playing the New York Rangers. And even in those cases, they still won while losing. People generally don’t like that there was no joy in Mudville.

So don’t pretend there’s a chance F1: The Movie ends with Hayes and/or Pearce dying in a fiery crash and Ruben forced out and bankrupt. Besides, there are plenty of good things about this movie that provide a reason to watch.

One of those reasons is Brad Pitt. He’s very easy on the eyes, confirmed by Pearce’s mother (Sarah Niles), when she first lays eyes on a large poster of Hayes and mildly grosses out her son with her comments.  But Pitt can also be relied on to always deliver a good, if not great, performance. Some might complain that Pitt always just plays himself, to which I reply – yeah, exactly. Isn’t that like complaining about pizza always being pizza?

You know who else is easy on the eyes and gives a great performance? Damson Idris. Pearce is cocky, arrogant, entitled, and wildly talented. He’s essentially younger Hayes, which is another staple of sports movies like this, including…wait for it…The Natural.

Further Discussion

Idris delivers a performance that nails all of those character traits, then nails Pearce’s character growth through Pearce’s very strong story arc. It’s so well done, you’ll go from wanting someone on the pit crew to hit him with a wrench to kinda, sorta rooting for him to win the last race. Don’t worry, that’s not a spoiler. Hayes and Pearce both participate in the races, and only one of them has to win to save Ruben’s ownership. You’ll be rooting for both of them in the end, I promise.

You know who else is easy on the eyes and gives a great performance? Kerry Condon. She plays Kate McKenna, a former aerospace engineer and the team’s technical director. McKenna is the brains behind the team and the design of the car. She’s also the love interest, but the screenplay doesn’t turn her into the wide-eyed damsel pining for Hayes.

Perhaps the best scene of the film features McKenna expertly handling her two head-butting drivers in a friendly game of poker to determine which driver gets to be the primary driver in an upcoming race. It’s the kind of scene and performance that confirms why she was nominated for an Academy Award (The Banshees of Inisherin).

You know who else is easy on the eyes and gives a great performance? Just kidding, I’ll
stop now. And, yes, Javier Bardem gives a great performance; not sure about the other part.
Sorry, Javy, you’re no Brad Pitt.

Conclusion

You know what else is easy on the eyes and performs great? All of the racing stuff and not just the racing scenes themselves (which are very cool). While the story is completely fictional, the filmmakers went to great lengths to showcase much of what goes into an F1 racing team. The technology alone is staggering for what seems like such a simple sport – to drive a car really fast.

From wind tunnels, to racing simulators, to an operations room and team that looks like it’s going to launch rockets to the moon, to the various components of the cars, it’s mind-boggling to realize it’s all done to gain a few seconds of time. And for the low, low cost of a $50-150 million per year.

F1: The Movie does all the right things. Not only does it check all the boxes of a good summer blockbuster: good action, beautiful people, and excellent visual effects. It checks all the boxes of movies that you’ll watch multiple times – good storytelling, well-developed characters, smart dialogue, and excellent performances. I knew next to nothing about F1 before this film, and now I’m far more interested in the entirety of it.

Rating: Ask for the low, low cost of zero dollars back.

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