Whatever else can be said about F1, it is a self-evident truth that the summer blockbuster goes somewhere fast. There are plenty of points of narrative propulsion, character interest, and necessary points of conflict built into Ehren Kruger's script, and Brad Pitt looms on the screen with his five o’clock shadowed handsomeness — five o’clock in terms of both facial hair and age — to keep us pulled into the drama for the film’s 155-minute duration. But let's be honest: The primary point of the movie is getting from 0-100 plus mph and with daredevil corner navigating that gets the adrenaline going for gamers and ordinary, sedentary citizens alike.
Big-screen super-dynamism is its domain and its objective. Mission accomplished.
It's surprising that cinema hasn't embraced car racing more regularly or passionately, given the natural sensory compatibility of the motion picture medium and the literally motion-driven sport. The lineage includes such standout models as the Paul Newman–starring Winning, the Steve McQueen–starring Le Mans, the late local Paul Walker–starring Fast and Furious franchise, and, just recently, 2019’s Ford Vs. Ferrari. With the sleek-yet-sometimes-chaotic visual choreography of F1, brought to you by big budget action peddler producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Joseph Kosinski (of Top Gun: Maverick fame) and cinematographer Claudio Miranda’s hyper-kinetic eye, the genre hits a new peak.
