Review: F1

Formula One racing is, amongst other things, an endurance test. Which is why most movies about it - including F1 - tend to take the long view; each race is a stage in a campaign, each individual moment is merely part of a greater whole. It's a tricky story structure for modern Hollywood, which tends to like things simple and focused. F1 doesn't always make the turn.

After flaming out early as a F1 racer, Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) has become something of a racetrack ronin, taking any gig so long as its behind the wheel and excelling at it while stumbling at pretty much everything off the track. Ruben (Javier Bardem) is a former compatriot turned chief of a race team that can't get off the starting block, and he's got an offer Sonny can't refuse - though he tries for a minute or two.

The driver Ruben already has is not impressed by his new partner. Joshau Pearce (Damson Idris) is a young hotshot with a manager constantly whispering in his ear, giving him advice - don't trust Sonny, focus on social media - that even Pearce knows is wrong, but there wouldn't be a movie without it. 

Will Sonny mentor the rising star? Will Pearce take his rightful place on the podium to signal the generational torch has been passed? Does anyone remember how writer-director Joseph Kosinski's previous film Tom Gun: Maverick ended?

There are a lot of moving parts here and most of them work. The race footage, much of which was shot inside and from actual race cars, is thrilling; the races themselves are largely focused on tactics (tires are extremely important!), and they're explained well. This doesn't oversell the danger, but whenever something does go wrong it's gut-wrenching - if sometimes only for a few seconds.

Idris balances cocky and insecure in a winning combination, while Kerry Condon - who plays the team's top car designer - injects plenty of spark into a role that is only slightly more than a love interest for Sonny. Who doesn't really need one as his real connection is with Ruben, played with charm and endlessly likable energy by Bardem.

Pitt himself is once again the well-worn expert at his job, someone who's seen it all and taken it in his stride... most of the time at least. It's a generic leading-man role - Pitt is starting to give Harrison Ford vibes in some ways - but Pitt remains magnetic on screen. Good news, adults: he's a laid-back natural leader who's great at his job and winning with the ladies, AKA a fantasy figure aimed at people older than 12. 

If there's a flaw in this two and half hour film it's that Kosinski can't seem to find a compelling story in all these parts. It feels at times like an off-brand Michael Mann film, but Mann builds his stories about men who are driven, not drivers. Pearce has the motivation, but he's in the second seat and he's not fully formed; Pitt, playing a character seemingly tailor-made for him, rarely makes us feel the stakes.

Sonny is helping out an old friend, and also getting one last chance to prove himself, and also being a mentor to the next generation. Which is one too many motivations, especially when at least two of them are in opposition and none of them run counter to him being just a good old boy who likes to go fast. When you're at the pointy end of a multi-million dollar organisation based around hurtling around racetracks across the globe at terrifying speeds, there's such a thing as being too nice. 

- Anthony Morris