F1 movie TRASHED by the BBC in brutal review

F1 Movie

F1 movie TRASHED by the BBC in brutal review

It has not all been positive feedback for the glossy $300million production.

Graham Shaw Consultant Editor

Digital sports specialist running global brands for 30 years

Saturday 21 June 2025 11:57

The much-hyped F1 movie got pretty positive reviews this week, until it didn’t.

Monday night’s glittering premiere in New York, featuring an all-star cast including Brad Pitt and some pretty horrific driver fashion statements, captured headlines around the world.

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On the back of that we got the first reviews about the movie, and first impressions appeared to be pretty good. Props it appeared to all concerned - including 'producer' Lewis Hamilton.

Erik Davis of Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes (which scored the movie 85) wrote: "Joseph Kosinski’s F1 the Movie hits the gas and doesn’t stop. The races are epic, the sound design, editing, cinematography, performances and music are all top notch. You definitely feel shades of Top Gun: Maverick in that it plays like an old school summer blockbuster. What a ride."

BBC takes down F1 movie

That seemed to be the general opinion from critics, but as the days pass not everybody is being quite so positive about the $300million blockbuster. Enter the BBC…

The bastion of British broadcasting - a much respected player in global media - has now given its verdict on the production. And to say it is brutal would be something of an understatement.

You can read it in full here, but if you work for F1, maybe best to give it a wide berth.

Nicholas Barber’s take is withering, describing the F1 movie as “essentially a glossy corporate promotional film with so much distracting product placement that you're more likely to remember the brand names than the characters” - OUCH

That passage pretty much sums up what Barber thinks about the movie - in essence all style and zero substance. F1 wanting to promote F1, and being scared of offending F1. No wonder he calls it 'a non-starter'.

Barber also has issues with the portrayal lead character Sonny Hayes (played by Pitt), an ageing driver who returns to the grid in the twilight of life after decades out of the picture. Pretty unlikely.

But those issues with Sonny are nothing compared to the problems he has with F1, and Nicholas can’t stop himself by going in for another dig:

“The biggest issue with ‘F1’, though, is not its insistence on showing its leading man in a flattering light, but its equivalent, fawning attitude towards Formula One itself,” he blasts. OUCH again.

Barber is at pains to point out that the movie is not poorly made - ‘it’s not a car crash’. But it’s the sheer lack of depth and intrigue which leaves him cold.

He continues: “There is no wisp of criticism or scepticism, and no hint of anything exploitative or sleazy. Formula One fans may be pleased by the glimpses of their favourite drivers, but F1 is so intent on being positive about its milieu that none of these men is allowed to be a proper antagonist, or even to say anything rude about Sonny.

“Nobody can misbehave, and nothing terrible can happen to any of the characters, so there is no tension to speak of.”

The end result, at least in Barber’s eyes, is a film which takes us through a series of long races with plenty of gloss and nice production, but little in the way of plot to get our teeth into.

His closing line before he delivers a brutal two-star verdict is once again withering:

“Formula One enthusiasts may disagree, and they may be delighted that their beloved motorsport has been put on the big screen in such a laudatory fashion. Everyone else: this is not where you want to be.”