F1: The Movie (2025) Review

I waited patiently for this film to come to theaters. You see, Top Gun: Maverick is one of my favorite action films, and Joseph Kosinski is the same director. Spoiler alert--F1: The Movie (2025) is not Top Gun: Maverick-level quality, but I didn’t expect it to be. What I expected was a fast-paced and engaging racing film, and Kosinski delivers.

Our hero is Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt), a washed-out Formula 1 driver who accepts the call to help his struggling friend, Ruben Cervantes (Javier Bardem), fix his Formula 1 team. His specific objective: mentor the hotshot rookie, Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris), and win races. That’s the external objective. Internally, something else propelled Sonny to take the job and leave retirement. He loves racing and wants to be the best driver in the world.

Sonny Hayes’ character was a tough one to figure out. Brad Pitt’s portrayal here was not nearly as defined as his portrayals of Billy Beane in Moneyball or Don “Wardaddy” Collier in Fury. This brings me to an important metaphor in the film—playing cards. Sonny is a card player and gambler. He keeps a single card in his suit before racing—and doesn’t even glance at it. And when playing poker, he keeps his cards hidden, feeling no compulsion to show what he’s holding, even when it’s significant. These images explain Sonny’s character better than I can in words. From what we see, he’s steady, determined, and loyal. What’s going on inside his mind? I’m really not sure.

What really fascinated me was something I discovered after watching the movie while reading Bret Eckelberry’s review at PluggedIn. He notes that an important scene in the movie “wouldn’t be out of place in an old Western.” A Western!! This comment was an interpretive key for me, unlocking my understanding and appreciation of the film.

Shortly before seeing the movie, I had been working through The Moral Premise by Stanley D. Williams and he had just defined the Western genre in the following way:

Westerns are stories about rugged individualism; that is, a hero who helps a community resolve a problem of social integration that brings about a new social order. But in the end, our Western hero returns to his individual ways and cannot himself be integrated into the new order (113).

Want to understand F1: The Movie? Think of the Western. But instead of dirt and rocks, think asphalt and chunks of rubber. And instead of the horse, envision a multi-million dollar jet engine on wheels. Don’t believe me? Look at Sonny's first entrance onto the racetrack. Can you hear the jingle of his spurs? 

One of the reasons why the movie fell short of Top Gun: Maverick was that I did not care about Sonny nearly as much as Maverick (Tom Cruise). This meant there was less of an emotional impact as I walked away. If you love racing and want strong character development, go watch Ford v. Ferrari (2019); it’s an excellent movie that carries a strong emotional impact. 

In conclusion, I appreciated the themes of sacrifice and loyalty at its core, and the film's strong acting, visuals, and sound editing. If you’re looking for a Western meets racing film, then this summer blockbuster may just be for you. 

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Dane Bundy is President of Stage & Story and Director of Fine Arts at Regents School of Austin.