F1: The Movie Review

        It was only a matter of time before I even talk about this one. I think it was the teaser that gave any prospective viewer just a taste of what kind of movie it was going to be. More so that we get brief sequences of the stylistic view of showing just how fast an intense a contemporary Formula 1 car is. And that Brad Pitt can seemingly fit into any role without us referring to the movie as that Brad Pitt racing movie. I was hyped about this one, more so that I was curious as to how Joseph Kosinski was able to follow up from Top Gun: Maverick. 

1. Sonny Hayes’ Redemption

        I just want to say that after marathoning three racing films in the month. You can appreciate just how far the sub-genre can be told cinematically. We started off with a quasi-documentary/sports film, a historical one and a realistic fiction where we see how racing is now as a sport. Now, this film isn’t a total representation of Formula 1 nowadays, trust me. The stuff that is shown as far as getting an advantage to win and progressively get ahead in the position rankings in a race is hilarious. Of course, it’s a film that has taken a lot creative liberties to show just what goes on in a regular season for any curious outsider. 

        With that, we follow Sonny Hayes as he’s a professional driver. The introduction that we see in the beginning as he participates in the 24 Hours of Daytona, an endurance race. From the start, he’s very good with how he operates inside the cockpit. The way it was shot and edited is one thing I’ll talk about in the cinematography section. It’s one of those films where you’re just like how did they film it the way that they did. We’ll talk about that a little later. Hayes is approached by his old teammate Ruben to help his fledging F1 team APX GP. 

        What follows is the growing pains as Hayes attempts to help out his friend by putting up with the young rookie driver Joshua. There’s other stuff that happens within the movie but I like to keep it simple and just focus on Pitt’s character in the film. With how he’s introduced, he manages to maneuver his way through the opposing drivers and make smart decisions that benefits his racing team. He’s always the person looking for an advantage, to the point where he meets up with APX GP’s technical director to gain some help to advance in the races. 

        Hayes is a likeable guy, but the moments between him and Joshua is like seeing two people not tolerating each other at all. Their introduction gets testy when Joshua questions if Sonny can compete at the F1 level. They’re at equal footing, but as the film progresses, they inevitably understand each other and work cooperatively in order to win the succeeding races. It’s a classic Hollywood story beat, but one where there’s moments where each character gets a humbling up so as to not have one guy be Mr. Perfect. 

        I think it would’ve been easy to have Sonny Hayes be just a one note guy where racing is his whole character. From the onset it seems like that, but I’m glad that the movie really gives him more to be an approachable to the whole team. Yet, he’s stuck in his ways where he goes against the orders of the technical directors that are trying to adhere to the rules of the race. There’s even a moment between him and Kate where they discuss why he races for a living. It’s kind of sappy, but we get an understanding that he used to be an F1 racer but suffered a severe injury. Within the film we get flashbacks of his race, bonus points for the static effect like it’s a recording off a VHS tape. 

        The other characters are good too as we follow APX GP’s season in the thick of it. I think the standout among the crew is Kate. The technical director who is inspired by Sonny to help develop modifications to the car that gives them an advantage. I’m glad that she’s not relegated to the background, but one where we see her get confident to help the drivers. The moments between her and Hayes almost gives us that romance aspect that’s expected. To me, it seems flirtatious more than anything from Sonny’s point of view. 

        Lastly, I should elaborate more on the rookie Joshua. From the start he’s a very cocky person who thinks he’s the guy when he’s obviously not. As I mentioned earlier, him and Sonny start off not liking each other. He goes through the motions where he’s embracing the sponsorships and has a meticulous training regiment. Joshua is someone where at one point we want him to see eating humble pie, albeit it was shocking that he would be that guy where you have the obligatory crash where it all goes wrong. I think my favorite moment of him is when he’s at Vegas at a club before the race. He gets totally emasculated when some girls ask if he knows the other F1 drivers. Slowly getting him to realize that he’s not a big shot in comparison to the other racers. 

2. Joseph Kosinski 

        Me and the director go way back, and it’s interesting to see his film trajectory take him. At the start of the decade me and my mother watched his film debut of Disney’s Tron: Legacy. Thinking back, it’s just wild to think a massive studio would give a relatively new filmmaker the keys to their underrated franchise. It was an okay film, but the special effects practically save the movie from being completely mediocre. What followed was his second film Oblivion with Tom Cruise. From what I gathered was that it was just a middle of the road movie. 

        He gained massive stock in attention when he directed Top Gun: Maverick. Now, I’ll say that I didn’t believe in that film since I thought that it wasn’t going to do good. Of course, he specializes in sequels that take place 30 years after the original. No one could’ve imagined that his film would gross a billion dollars at the box office. Part of the reason perhaps was just how the action was telegraphed to the audience. With the cockpit views and the dynamic action that is miles better from the original. 

        It was only natural that when he was offered to do this film, that it would have the fingerprints that is obviously his film. One thing I noticed is that he has a certain panache when showing the cars. It’s like seeing a Michael Bay movie but the focus is on the car. With how the whole film looks is very grounded despite it’s budget. The grittiness of it is felt when the race happens and when Sonny is winning his first race. I feel that in some way APX GP’s headquarters is reminiscent of Tron: Legacy since it has that clean look to it. Or the fact that it’s supposed to mirror an Apple product. 

        Speaking of Apple, this is the first film that they produced that did well box office wise. Their foray into film has been a mess as soon as they pivoted to finding distributors in the theaters. At first they produced their own content in their dedicated streaming service. Even having an Oscar win under their belt for one of their films CODA. Everything has been mixed, I’ve only watched Ridley Scott’s Napoleon, but the others that came out like Argylle and Fly Me To The Moon haven’t done well reception-wise and commercially. Although there are diamonds in the rough such as this one and with Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon.

3. Cinematography

        The big thing that makes the film work is just how it was shot. The teaser that was released only gave us a small glimpse of what kind of immersive movie this was going to be. The scene at Daytona had me sold of what kind of movie this was going to be. Just with how the edits spliced in to make the race more exciting. With the soundtrack complimenting the intensity of the race makes it a knock out introductory of what the audience is getting themselves into. 

        Everything else within the Formula 1 season is all great. A good chunk of it is very reminiscent of Top Gun: Maverick, where you have the cockpit point of view facing the drivers and what’s in front of them. The best moment is captured briefly when the race starts, Sonny is having to swiftly moves his view while gripping the wheel to maneuver the other cars. All of it is very spontaneous and chaotic and it’s only appropriate where after everything settles feels exciting since anything can go wrong. 

 

4. Overall

        F1: The Movie is one of the biggest surprises this year, and one of the best sports movies of the decade. 

Ford v Ferrari Review

        You may have noticed that I skipped a film when discussing racing movies. I really wanted to discuss Ron Howard’s Rush, but I feel that I didn’t want the whole month to be ostensibly gushing over Formula 1. It is good so don’t get me wrong. Maybe I’ll reserve it when I dedicate a month of Ron Howard sometime this year. With that, no surprise that I wanted to discuss this one with James Mangold directing it. When reading the announcement and seeing the trailer, I hoped and prayed that the film would be good. And I was proven right. 

1. Carroll and Shelby

        With a title like Ford v Ferrari, one would assume that it be a corporate movie where there’s no humanity but just a 2 hour film of the Ford Motor Company patting themselves on a back by beating Ferrari in a 24 hour relay race. Well, it’s partially true but what really excels the movie from a corporate slop is the camaraderie between two guys. We follow racer Ken Miles and Carroll Shelby as they collaborate on building a race car that would compete with Ferrari’s. 

        That’s practically the very simplified plot of the film. The overall meat and potatoes of it is really engrossing since we see where the two men are coming from. The characterizations of the men makes them endearing and empathetic of where they’re coming from. I like how Shelby has the maverick mentality where he can be a confident guy, while also maneuvering through the bureaucracy of the Ford company. We see his introduction where he was a driver but had to quit due to medical reasons. 

        Matt Damon excels as Shelby since he does most of the heavy lifting to get the story moving from Ford’s hesitancy to finally taking the initiative. Christian Bale practically steals the show as he portrays the late Ken Miles. For a good while, I thought Bale was an American since he would nail down his accent perfectly as Patrick Bateman and as Bruce Wayne. So colored me flustered when we hear him in a distinct British accent. It’s not distracting in the least bit, but his characterization is that he’s a salt of the earth kind of guy who understands cars. 

        We see him as he truly understands what makes a car work, right down to telling Shelby and the other mechanics the little aspects that is slowing down the Ford GT40. I think it would’ve been better to see him in the beginning as a dedicated racer. Although, I can understand that the film didn’t want to be ostensibly about him. The best moment I think in the film is when he and his wife get into an argument about what Ken’s been doing. It’s the kind of argument where Ken tells her just how much he’s being paid and the indecision he faces, prompts her and us to be like “Take it!”.

        Lastly, I like the moments between Ken and his son. While there’s not a lot that would make us mentally droll, I like that Ken is a good guy when it comes to his family. His son is as passionate about racing as he is. To the point where he gives him a ride on the GT40. I think that’s what makes Ken very endearing for the general audience who had no clue who he was and giving us a glimpse of a humble guy who’s cinematic representation of a salt of the earth kind of man. 

        I feel that this is a prime example of a comfort movie where it literally has the cylinders firing with the supporting cast contributing more. I think it was a choice to show just how much of an inflexible person Henry Ford II was, and how stubborn his assistant was when he wanted a picturesque look into how the company wanted the team to be represented in the race. In some way I like the fact that the film focused on the company first and then transitioning to Carrol and Ken putting in the work. I’ll talk about cars, don’t you worry. Anyways, I think the best scene involving the corporate brass is when Shelby takes Ford II on a ride in the GT40. 

        All of it feels like a gradual buildup where Ford feels that he’s wasting money on the project. Moreover, he tries to block off his assistant from interfering in the meeting. The moment inside the car is great since we see Shelby showing Ford II the power that the supercar has. It’s a mix of emotions that Henry feels with freight, exhilaration and emotional with how he confided to Shelby that he wishes his Dad can see and feel it if he were alive. This movie is so great that I can’t put it into more words.

2. Racing

        The expectation that the film had is that the racing had to be exhilarating. And show just how fast the GT40 can be a Ferrari in the confines of the 60s. It’s fast but we see just how fast it is and how Ken Miles among others helped make it do what it was supposed to do. And before we see it in action at Le Mans, we see how the other race sequences in the movie gradually give us what we want to see. At first we see Carroll when he’s racing and then transition to him seeing Miles racing in a small circuit. 

        All of it again is a gradual buildup to when we see Miles suiting up and racing at the 24 hour relay race. I think the one moment of speed is shown is when we see Ken and his wife get at it. While Ken is a huge car freak, he gets scared that his wife is flooring it in their family car. That was a good laugh with a payoff that couldn’t have been scripted better. The overall race in Le Mans is the reason why the film has us right where it got us. Just the level of excitement where the racers had to run to their cars and start it, all the while avoiding the others to get going was unexpected. 

        When talking about these films, one has to mention that the sound is clearly the audio star. The film won an Academy Award for it, and I couldn’t imagine having a pricy home theater setup where the whole walls and the house shake as the rumbles and roars of the cars zooming by. Additionally, I like how the racing was shot too with sometimes having the camera being stationary and we see the GT40 rapidly coming in and darting out of view. More so with Ken being in the zone and trying to advance upward to the rankings.

3. Overall

        Ford v Ferrari is one of James Mangold’s best films and one of the best films of the 2010s. 

Grand Prix Review

        I’ve decided to spice it up this time. Usually I’d talk about a director’s greatest work around March and even discuss some genre movies that some people have or haven’t seen. For a good while I haven’t talked about a sports movie, you may have noticed that I didn’t talk about a football movie back in February. I feel like cars and movies go hand in hand with showing the speed and intensity of a race and just how far we can make a car go fast. So all this month I’ll be talking about racing movies. 

1. Hard Knocks

        You’re going to notice that most of the films have the Formula 1 league as the entity that the racers compete in. While it’s not on purpose that NASCAR seems to be left out on a chunk of racing films. Watching this film, I was surprised that there was no rose-tinted look or a fantasy of what exactly the drivers go through in this somewhat fictional representation of the actual sport. I’ll talk about that when I’ll get to it. You’re probably wondering why I picked this film, and I would like to thank the Alamo Drafthouse for showing the trailer prior to F1: The Movie. 

        Basically, I’m talking about racing films to eventually discuss F1 and just gush about how amazing it is. Anyways, with the pre-show that the theater has chain has cobbled together, I was wowed by the trailer of this film. With just approximately 3 minutes of the footage that was shown in promotion, the film practically is the visual inspiration for last year’s film. Particularly with how it was shot when the action was focused on the drivers and their cars. Again, I’ll talk about the selling point of the film.  

        With all that out of the way, let’s talk about this one. In a way this is a kind of film where it’s an epic. Just shy of the three-hour mark, but it has that vastness to it when the whole movie is focused on this one season in formula racing. We juggle with four drivers as they deal with the season and their own personal thoughts as the period. The drivers: Jean-Pierre, Pete, Scott and Nino all get equal time since we do get a somewhat condensed look into how a season usually goes. It’s one of those things where there’s no central guy to follow or a leading man but guys who are at different points in their careers when the season starts. 

        Most of the personal stuff happens in between the races. Which is a bit of a breather and we follow them as they have personal issues which makes it interesting. I feel that it’s rare for a film dealing with a sport where you see the personal side of an athlete. With one of them having marital issues and another who is trying to escape a brother’s shadow and living to his name. It creates that empathy to at least care about these guys since it’s a nearly three hour long film. Among the four of them, Jean-Pierre is the interesting one since he’s the best out of the main quartet. 

        What makes him interesting is that while he’s the most accomplished, he has some ruminations that he questions what he does. Like questioning if it was worth it since he says that driving in the cars is like a coffin. The moments between him and journalist Louise are sweet when the two of them bond and when Jean-Pierre brings her to the races. When she arrives to the races is when we get the glimpses of the dangers of the sport. As I mentioned earlier, the film doesn’t have any fantasy element that has the sport be squeaky clean. 

        I was shocked that there was a level of carnage on display when one of the drivers crashed their cars. More so that we see the drivers being ejected outwards and even be covered in tattered clothes and bleeding. I think the most shocking is when one of the drivers accidentally crashes into two spectators. It’s one thing where the league would want their representation not to include any danger or any visible death. I think Formula 1 was very upfront with what kind of dangers was and still is present. 

        One more thing, even though what’s being shown is a movie, I like that the overall approach is like a documentary. It has it where we follow the drivers and their trials and tribulations in the season and it has that grounded approach. I think it’s what gives it the edge that it has some sense of realism. Like, the film cycles through the four drivers and what their lives are and how it can be seemingly isolating when they get the media attention that it makes them feel alone. Especially when we have the radio broadcasts of the race which is a special touch. 

2. Cinematography 

        It’s a cliché now that when we see a film that looks epic in a sense, the advertising and word of mouth usually say to see it in the biggest screen. With Grand Prix, it’s definitely one of those films where it has to be seen. More so that it’s one of those rare films that was shown in Cinerama. Think of the theaters as a proto IMAX where the screens were massive and it was curved. When first watching the trailer, it looks weird when seeing it at a standard screen in a theater. The type of aspect ratio that was used is called Smilebox. 

        Anyways, to say that the racing scenes is the reason to watch the movie is just only partly true. Just seeing the action as it’s presented is something where I’m just wondering how did they do it. We really get a sense of how fast and intense the racing is, compounded with the roar of the engines and exhaust. Most of the shots have it where we’re seeing the drivers in the cockpit and having a point of view of what’s in front of them. 

        All the visual flair is just great looking even for 1966. More so that there’s loads of edits that is sprinkled in to give that film more of a pop. You have it where we have split screens of the race and what’s inside the driver’s mind. It makes it more engaging and thrilling since their attention is not on the track in front of them. If there’s one camera move that I like is when the camera is on the driver then slowly pans to the other drives on the side. To me, once more I wondered how did they do it and how could it be achieved. 

3. Overall

        Grand Prix is probably one of the best racing films of all time and one of the best films of the 60s.