A PULSATING RIDE THROUGH AN OFT-BEATEN TRACK

SPORTS dramas often operate within the strict constraints of a binary outcome. The hero or a team either wins or loses. The simplicity is also the genre's beauty. As Sonny Hayes says in F1, "It's not about the money." It is never about the end outcome. It is the "how", with its interpersonal drama, display of indomitable will, and ample amounts of adrenaline-pumping moments inside the stadium/ring/track, that forms the core appeal of sports dramas.

- PRASHANTH VALLAVAN

SPORTS dramas often operate within the strict constraints of a binary outcome. The hero or a team either wins or loses. The simplicity is also the genre's beauty. As Sonny Hayes says in F1, "It's not about the money." It is never about the end outcome. It is the "how", with its interpersonal drama, display of indomitable will, and ample amounts of adrenaline-pumping moments inside the stadium/ring/track, that forms the core appeal of sports dramas. Having said that, it's not the outcome or even the "how" but the "why" that firmly tethers us to the characters and drama of F1.

An old timer is pulled back into the game for one last shot at glory. He has to work along with an effervescent young rookie, desperate to prove himself, which fills him with doubts and recklessness. A team leader puts the team together to "bet the farm" on that one final game. It's a formula as old as the genre itself. But F1 doesn't aim to reinvent the wheel. It just spins it really fast, which, honestly, is just part of the thrill. As I mentioned earlier, what keeps us hooked is why it's spinning. The film has "why's" of all shapes, sizes, and colours.