By Joe Aura, aurajoe6@gmail.com
F1 (2025) is a good ‘Hollywood’ fantasy of the sport.
Visually, it delivers an authentic reconstruction of Formula 1 racing put on film. Narratively, it leans into Hollywood logic so hard that purists may need a neck brace. The result is a movie that is written in perfect script, but in the wrong language.
The film stars Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes, a veteran driver making an improbable comeback, partnered with rising star Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris). Filmed during actual Grand Prix weekends, with real cars, real paddocks, and real team principals roaming in the background, the movie achieves a level of realism that traditional sports dramas rarely touch. The seamless integration of real F1 personalities – Toto Wolff, Max Verstappen, and even the Sky Sports commentary crew – gives the film an almost documentary-like immediacy.
The film soars in its technical execution.
Director Joseph Kosinski, who elevated aerial cinematography in Top Gun: Maverick, does for motorsport what he previously did for fighter jets. Working with cinematographer Claudio Miranda, he uses custom-built cameras mounted onto modified F2 machines, creating visceral, vibrating close-ups of wheel-to-wheel combat. Unlike the polished, TV-friendly broadcasts fans are used to, the film plunges the viewer directly into the claustrophobic violence of 300 km/h decision-making. The speed feels real because it is.
The neutral, clean color grade – faithful to some track conditions – gives the film the texture of a modern sports documentary. Meanwhile, Hans Zimmer’s score pulses beneath the chassis like an idling V6 hybrid: restrained when needed, thunderous when unleashed.
But for all the technical mastery, F1 could not resist Hollywood flair. And this is where some fans slam the brakes.
Several race sequences rely on physics-defying heroics, impossible overtakes, and a spectacular fireball crash from which a driver recovers with suspicious speed. Strategy is simplified to safety hazard levels – “Plan C for Chaos”- a far cry from the razor-sharp, data-driven realities of modern F1. And while Lewis Hamilton’s role as producer helped elevate accuracy, even his involvement couldn’t prevent the script from leaning into familiar underdog tropes: the aging legend returning to glory, the friction-turned-friendship between teammates, and a subplot romance squeezed into a sport where drivers barely have time to breathe.
The paddock environment, however, is startlingly believable. I felt like I was in a paddock myself. Kosinski captures the militaristic precision of pit crews, the media storms, the pressure-cooker atmospheres, and the corporate spectacle that surrounds every race weekend. It is the closest the average viewer will ever get to the Formula 1 they watch but do not truly see.
In the end, F1 (2025) is a dazzling cinematic achievement wrapped in a script that could have taken more risks. It is thrilling, undeniably beautiful, and engineered with obsessive care – yet it asks audiences to suspend disbelief at every narrative corner. Casual viewers will cheer. Hardcore fans will wince. But both will walk out entertained.
For story pitches, commissioned writing, or collaborations, connect with Joe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aura-joe-digitalproducer/recent-activity/articles/