F1 The Movie races past expectations

Heart and humanity meet thrilling action in the Joseph Kosinski-directed film starring Brad Pitt

- John Lui

F1 THE MOVIE (PG13) 155 minutes, opens on June 26 ★★★★★

The story: Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt), a nomadic American driver-for-hire, is brought into a struggling Formula One (F1) team because team owner Ruben Cervantes (Javier Bardem) needs his experience to temper the raw talent of young driver Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris). The American's straight-shooting ways annoy members of the mainly European team, including Kate McKenna (Kerry Condon), the technical director. His teammate Joshua resents being saddled with a driver past his prime. He is proven right when their early races together are disasters.

There is a huge ask behind this movie, and that is that moviegoers ought to care enough about the sport of F1 racing to pay money to see it.

Director Joseph Kosinski knows all about making insular, machismo-driven worlds more open and inviting. He helmed the military drama Top Gun: Maverick (2022), the Tom Cruise action movie that made naval aviators human beings first, aeroplane jockeys second.