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Hey guys, Spanners here, and I haven't seen the F1 movie. Boo! Now I may yet get a press screening in order to do a pre-release race review. But one of our crew has. So I do want to talk to them to get a mini review just because I want to. And I'm incredibly excited about it. I got excited watching everybody at the premiere and watching the trailers. And I'm definitely going to go into that movie trying to park as much of my F1 fan knowledge as possible. I'm going to go into it.
as uncynically as possible so that I can talk to you guys at hopefully what I suspect will be a kind of a joyous celebration of Formula One. Certainly the critical reviews seem pretty good. There's a mix, but there's like 84%. on Rotten Tomatoes, which seems very positive. But don't worry, I am then going to playfully nitpick all the things you'd expect me to nitpick. So, you know, there's a few reviews out. Rolling Stone says F1's Brad Pitt.
Formula One movie is what an old school blockbuster looks like. OK, that seems pretty positive. The Telegraph says, F1, the movie, Brad Pitt's spectacular racing drama is Barbie for dads. I'm a dad. It could be for me. And also then the BBC F1 review motor racing blockbuster is a non-starter. So someone who has seen the movie, it's Canada's own Christina Lee Mace. Hello, Christina. Hello, hello. I do have to say.
The most disappointing part about the preview that I went to see is that there was no helmet popcorn bucket available for me to acquire. Oh, okay. So for June, they had these... What was it? The sandworm popcorn buckets. And so we are sticking your hand into the worm. Yes. And I actually have an R2D2 popcorn bucket where the lid is actually a cup. So I can put a straw in and both drink and have my popcorn out of R2-D2. I'm very pro impractical popcorn buckets. But...
The helmet ones are only available at select theatres, and Cineplex in Canada hasn't released if they're going to have one yet, and it wasn't available at the preview, so we'll sit, we'll keep waiting. Okay. It's hard to enjoy a movie when I don't have a novelty popcorn bucket in my hand, I have to say. I really, I love the novelty popcorn stuff, but I want actual information from you.
Okay, you want actual critical review? I guess we could do that. Just because I am genuinely excited. Like, if you can say, well, okay, all that buzz, you know, has suckered me in. But then, yeah, right now I am suckered in. I cannot wait. If I don't get this press screening, I will be on the first available screening I can watch. We just need to put into context that this mini review isn't coming from someone sane necessarily.
So you went and watched Maverick, Top Gun, how many times at the cinema? 14 in a variety of screens ranging from IMAX, Dbox I did once, the X screen, I tried that as well. A little bit of everything. I'm incredibly passionate about this particular creative team.
They did a phenomenal job with Maverick and set the bar so incredibly high. And in a lot of ways, they did meet that bar. They met a lot of the standards that they set for themselves. And in other ways, they did drop the ball a little bit. It's very difficult. to match the magic that was Top Gun Maverick, but they definitely gave it their best shot. Oh, okay. So let's start. I guess we could do it kind of good, the bad and the ugly. First off, you know me, you know what...
ticks my boxes in terms of entertainment and how I've tried to approach Drive to Survive and things like that. I'm going to ask you, will I love it? And also, will it drive me nuts? That's the two questions. Should I watch it? Will I love it? Will it drive me nuts? All of the above is a yes. So there are going to be sequences where...
you're going to be so incredibly happy because it's just cars go fast and we've made it look as cool as possible. The variety of shots that they have in this movie showing off the speed, the agility, the beauty of these cars. Incredible. There's not a single angle or perspective or camera setup, really, that they have not had set up and placed in this movie. Absolutely brilliant. But it's going to frustrate you because the moment that stops...
You have to listen to dialogue that is somewhat clunky, a plot line that is by no means bad, but it's not great. It's kind of average. And when you pair up all of those factors that are kind of average against... phenomenal action sequences you do just feel a little bit let down okay so i mean i'm not actually a massive top gun fan but i did enjoy the human side of that i thought there was some really funny moments like
Old Maverick was way funnier and much more of a comedic character, actually, than in the original one. But, you know, you want that human story running through. So, you know, Rush, definitely a human story about James Hunt. and a Niki Lauda and Ford versus Ferrari as well. I didn't, I don't know anything really about, about that form of racing. Yeah. I was really into the characters and then to a much, much less extent, the recent Ferrari movie.
with the Sith Lord Jedi, ex-Jedi guy, can't remember, Adam Driver. Ferrari and Adam Driver, yes. Ferrari and Adam Driver. Oh my goodness. I hope it's better than the effects in Ferrari. But you need that human stories. I think... Action aside, I think with the team that's behind it, we're almost taking for granted. I'm taking for granted that the action is going to be good. Talk a little bit about that in a bit. But is there a human story to get your teeth into? There is a human story.
that I was moderately invested in. But it certainly did not captivate me, I think, in the same way that Top Gun Maverick did. Top Gun Maverick did a phenomenal job of having, for one, an ensemble cast. So even though you definitely have those characters that are taking up more screen time, more attention and that are better developed, you still had a whole group of people that you were really enjoying seeing the team dynamic.
he agrees, build up together. And they did try to replicate that here. They tried to have it be, this is, you know, Apex GP, and they're not doing well, they're not succeeding, you have some loose screws, essentially, that you're trying to tighten up so they can all perform well together. And they try to have those team building moments, but they don't have their epic summer song shirtless on the beach flag football game to really have that.
turning point, they really did miss some of those key team building moments or character building moments that would have had you invested. So I assume they focus on Javier Bardem as the team principal. if you like, and this F1, sorry, this lead technical, lead lady, and then the two drivers. So I take it there's not much from, you know, the derricks of the team. You're not hearing from the front jack man.
You actually do a little bit, quite funnily, like paying attention to the Jackman is actually a little entertaining in this story. But no, they don't develop the ancillary members of the teams very much.
It would be one thing if they never planned to, but you can tell that they did want you to be invested in those handful of... race engineers the ones that are on the radio and one of the wheel gunners there are people on that team that you're supposed to be invested in but they don't give you they try they didn't try to give you moments
to care about those characters and get connected, but they do not resonate to the level I think that they wanted it to. You never know what got cut and what got left on the cutting room floor. We know one big thing that got cut. We do know one big thing that got cut. The Bridgerton star.
Yes, Simone Ashley's character, who was supposed to be the love interest for Damson Idris's character, did get cut. And it is incredibly disappointing because she's an actress that is so enjoyable to watch. But...
I will say, once you watch the movie, I don't think people are going to be as disappointed that her character got cut because the screen time is taken up by a mom. So you're getting to see Damson Idris's character have... a mom who is very involved and the actress whose name is escaping me but she plays the therapist in ted lasso such such a good character and such good yes
Is it Nicole? Is it Nicola something? And yeah, she's brilliant anyway. She's great. The alcoholic, the alcoholic therapist from. Exactly. That she's playing the mom. She's playing the mom. Yes. So. It does make it somewhat forgivable that they cut Simone Ashley because the screen time that it is being allotted to instead is also a very valuable relationship that is very well developed on screen.
It's good to know. So would you say like Brad Pitt and Damsel Idris, are they equal? I know not in promotion, but are they kind of equally characters in the movie? Yes, in the movie, both of their characters are, it felt like they were on screen for a comparable amount of time, definitely a little bit more towards Brad's side, but...
You did feel like you were given enough time to get to know both characters, see where they're coming from and where they want to go with their careers. It was well balanced in that aspect. And they did try to have a good, interesting relationship with the two characters. And there were some scenes that did hit really well, but it did also feel like there wasn't one scene that really bonded the two, despite the fact that they did put effort into having that scene.
Yeah, so I don't know, changing subjects slightly, but going back, I don't know if you know the story behind the trailer quote, and I'm assuming this is part of the major plot where Javier Bardem says, They're in trouble. Brad Pitt is rescuing them. And I think I read in one review that they have to win a race, otherwise they're going to get sacked. I don't know if you know that that is a kind of a real-life nod to Flavio Briatore's better... Benetton? Why am I saying Benetton? Renault team.
that they needed to win one race, otherwise that programme was going to get shut down. And then that led to the Singapore crash gate. So as soon as I read that, I went, oh no, is there a deliberate crash in here? If there is, no spoilers. But it's interesting that they've taken kind of a real life... storyline and insert it in they have taken a lot of real life storylines pretty much every single incident on track everything that you're going to be seeing plot point wise
has almost been plucked directly from a history of Formula One at some point or another and been smushed into a single team and a single half season. does not take place over a full season. It takes place over nine races, not even a half season, closer to a third. So that's also where things I think are going to get a little bit tricky for fans.
is that if you're a long-term fan and you're seeing all of this chaos being tossed into one season, you're kind of going, is this very entertaining? Yes. But also, I don't know. I watched 2020. This is so not average. I have seen seasons like that, you know, 2012, 2021. I mean, if you look at just the crashes between Massa and Hamilton alone in 2009.
Probably make a movie out of that. So if I was to have a nice tequila shot every single time I got a reference and you know that Leonardo DiCaprio meme where he's pointing at the screen because he gets the thing. If I do that, will I be able to walk out of the theater? You will be pretty hammered about 25 minutes in, I would say. Okay, I'll have Matt doing the same with whiskey and then he can at least...
Carry me out. Matt wins. OK, I've got to ask some direct questions. My fears are from looking at the trailers. So obviously we'll try and keep it spoiler free. But I do want to ask. Did they keep the bit about they've got us in the straights. We're going to boot them in the turns. They kept it. They kept it. That entire scene start to finish. I had to cover my eyes a little bit. Oh my goodness. And shrink into my seat and try to hold back a giggle of, oh, gosh, we're really going here.
Okay. And to be fair, that is pretty much the worst scene that you're going to have throughout the entire movie. There might be more. Okay. So these are just from trailers. The safe. Who said anything about safe? FIA! There's so many things about being safe. Did they keep that? Yes. And that is in the same scene as The Straits, yes. It's all in one scene, that. Things that we saw from... Okay, so I think maybe...
a case for tequila is being made here. So there was a scene we saw being filmed at the Mexican Grand Prix where he was celebrating, but he had his gloves on, which every driver, that's the first thing that comes off. That is cut. That's cut. Okay, or that didn't make the cut. I will say a lot of the scenes that we saw being filmed at the actual tracks...
They're not full scenes in the movie. They're mostly just part of a montage. A lot more of the in-depth, fully-fledged scenes happen at their race center, so where their team is housed. that's where a lot of the scenes happen instead or they happen inside the garage. So even though we saw a lot being filmed in front of grandstands, it's part of a montage as opposed to fully fledged out scenes for the most part.
Excellent. And look, they did film a lot at the tracks. And so the F1 drivers were talking about what they thought. And I have to say, a lot of them were being very political. So Carlos Sainz was saying, hey, I mean, F1 fans, just forgive Hollywood a little bit. That felt unnecessary. Just go, yeah, I enjoyed it. That's cool. And then, you know, go home. That's media commitment ticked. Tsunoda said, yeah, whenever I was in it, I was being overtaken by Brad Pitt. But, yeah. And so...
They weren't overly enthusiastic about it, but it's not their job to be. My question to you would be, how did it land having all the drivers? as extras so like on a podium there was George Russell on the podium um in the background there was you know lots of pictures of walking with the drivers in the background how did that land it didn't oh
They were essentially extras. There was maybe two, three times at most that you actually heard a driver's voice. Oh, no. Yeah, their part in the entire movie is very... minimal. They're not used to any great extent at the end of the day. They do feel like just extras. And that's both disappointing and not. It just feels very strange to have All of these drivers, all of this real world, essentially superimposed on this fictional team, but also have them not interact with them at all.
So it's the weird hybrid of, yes, this is placed inside the world of Formula One. And yes, it was filmed at racetracks during actual race weekends. And you can feel a lot of that energy throughout the film. But... You're also not actually in the world. They're not actually interacting with any of the real characters except in split second reaction shots. Oh, so there's not like a thing of, you know, Alonzo puts his arm around one of the characters and says, hey.
This is racing, not testing or anything like that. They didn't give any of the drivers like a big cameo line. That's a miss. Not really. The only bigger thing you have is one of the drivers going over the radio and complaining.
Like you get a radio message from one of the drivers. And aside to that, it's... I heard as well that some of the commentary and the interviews was done by well-known... f1 media figures and that's always high risk so in drive to survive it's very obvious that oh they just happened to be that commentary was talking about the person in eighth place that nobody was paying attention to at the time
But in the driver to survive commentary, they go, and that's eighth place for Colopinto. No one was watching Colopinto. He wasn't featured in that race. And they did it to mixed results in the F1 academies. attempt to do drive to survive and there was one scene where the fantastic nicky shields had been given a line to read saying um something something like um they take they take the finish line you know instead of take the checkered flag and you kind of go
What's going on there? Oh, I see. Limited studio time. And she's just been told, just read what's on the page, Nikki. Jeez, come on. So how does that work? The intersection of people like Crofty and Brundle. And I think, is Will Buxton in it as well? Will Buxton is in it, and I have to say, they fit in with the furniture, so to speak. They were there and you were like, hey, cool, they're here, they're in this movie. But they never did anything that was so out of place that you really clocked it.
Oh, that was what Nikki Shields says. They crossed the checkered flag. And you go, no one would say cross the checkered flag. Take the checkered flag or cross the line. And I'm sure Nikki Shields would have looked at that and gone, guys, this doesn't seem right. We've just got 10 minutes in the studio, Nicky. Can we just read the line, please? Right, okay. So, question.
And I won't keep you long because, you know, I do want to keep our powder dry a little bit for, you know, the big review where I hope you will join us as well, because I would love to just take apart, you know, we'll do. You know, a general review much like this, but with some of the more that the cruise takes. And then we'll do a stop. Spoilers ahead.
And we'll see how much we can tear apart, right? So I think what I want to end on is ask you this question. It's about the driving scenes, which I think I'm taking for granted. that they're amazing. You have hinted they're amazing. I haven't heard any review saying anything bad about the action, apart from when they're maybe trying to splice it in with real cars. The question is, Christina, are the action scenes built for combat?
That was another trailer one I meant to ask you about. We've got to build this car for combat. It definitely, the combat line. Somebody pointed out, you know what, that was probably a habit that was picked up on Top Gun Maverick that they just did not let go of. Because guess what? When you're making a film about the US military or the Navy, I guess it was, yeah, combat comes up.
Duh. But here, it probably shouldn't. Oh my goodness. No, the cars are definitely in fighting form, I would say. I don't know if I'd describe it as combat, but that line is... still in it yes but but the driving the action scenes like i'm taking for granted how cool on the coolometer how cool are they very cool like you kind of sit back in your seat and just enjoy
The fact that everything is coming at you quickly, it really does a phenomenal job, especially when you're kind of getting a perspective from inside of the cockpit. you do feel like you're actually getting to see the process of the driver deciding, am I going on the inside? Am I going on the outside? I'm going to brake now. They do a fantastic job. of using all of the visuals that they have at their disposal, all the camera angles to visually, you get to see.
them making those decisions it's really satisfying when i play race cars on i racing and the reason i love vr over the screens are those exact moments where you've got to run on someone And you're in the toe and then you go up behind them. And it's that game of chess where you go inside, outside, which inside, outside or lift, you know? And, you know, you go, am I going to be Lando Norris in the wall? Am I going to be sensible and give it up?
use my clear tire advantage to overtake eventually? Or am I going to take, you know, the yards and yards on the right-hand side and then, you know, trying to overtake into the outside? That moment where you're up in the gearbox and it's decision time.
is just one of the most satisfying parts. You know, you have it in karting, in VR on the sim, it's the best. So it's good to know that it kind of drops you into that seat. And especially someone like you, who's too scared to go karting and hasn't fulfilled her promise to get into sim racing.
then for you, that's quite a unique experience. It is very fun, yes. I need to go and see it again, essentially, because they do... That was going to be my question. Are you going to see this another 13 times? No, not 13. I definitely don't feel the need to do that, but I do want to see it at least a second time, and I'm going to try it in D-Box because I'm very, I think this is one of those ones that's going to be satisfying to have the chair moving under you with.
All of the camera angles coming at you as well. So we will do that. What is D-Box? D-Box is this magical chair that you sit in and it will tilt and move and vibrate depending on what's going on on screen. All right. So the car would be going left and right and you'd be going left and right. I'm not going to lie. That feels like a bit much. If I'm honest, that feels a lot. It is. And it doesn't work with a lot of movies. But I think with this one, it would be...
At least a satisfying experience, I think. It'll be fun. So is it the kind of movie where if I can park my, oh, technically you wouldn't, can I park it and relax into it? Because two and a half hours, by the way, I have not got an attention span that fits well into two and a half hours of sitting still. I think you'll be able to handle it because at the end of the day, so much of the movie is action sequence.
So much of it. And it really is a good paced editing style that I think it is good for an attention span. Like, it's a classic action movie at the end of the day. You have... All of the action doing the heavy lifting, all of the big effort and nitpicky, detailed, we're going to make this fantastic energy has gone into the action sequences. Everything else about it is pretty average from...
the script, to the performances, to character building, all of that. Very average. The score, absolutely brilliant. Shout out Hans Zimmer. He never misses. The soundtrack, though, it's eh. But at the end of the day, it's an action film. It has a lot of action and it carries it. BetterHelp Online Therapy bought this 30-second ad to remind you right now. Wherever you are, to unclench your jaw, relax your shoulders, take a deep breath in and out. Feels better, right?
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Still listening? You belong here. Army, recruiting now. Search Army jobs. I suppose I have one question. I can't really talk to you without asking this question. Because you are a lady. And there has been some negative reviews about it from, I think, motorsport.com and The Race about how women are depicted in the film. And I know there was a great Reese Witherspoon.
I don't know where she did it, an awards show. And she said, listen to the amount of times women in movies ask the male main character, so what are we going to do? Because, you know, in the clutch situation, it has to be the man. That sorts it all out. And it seems weird because there's a really prominent senior technical character that's a woman. And yet it seems to be drawing some complaints. How do you as a lady feel?
And, you know, obviously you have to scale this around the general thing that they do this in Hollywood. So I know it's something that you have to encounter all the time. At the end of the day, it was an unnecessary plot point. And that's kind of the most frustrating part. That she was a bit rubbish, is it? Yes, yes. If you're going to have a love interest, first of all, have it be interesting to the plot.
And in this case, it really wasn't. No one really wants to see Brad Pitt falling in love. He's 100 years old. Like, nobody wants that at the end of the day. That is not interesting enough to put on screen. The thing is, the relationship between Sonny Hayes and... the lead technical engineer whose name is now escaping me because it has been 10 plus days of travel for me. I am very tired. I have not slept in my own bed yet. So excuse me for forgetting that. But...
Kate. Her name is Kate. Okay, she got there. Okay. But the thing is, the relationship between the two of them would have been so much more interesting had they kept it being filled with tension. It would have been so much more interesting if it would have been her going, I know how to design a car. You have to race what I have given you. And him going, no, no, no, you brought me in to help.
You win, so you have to listen to me. It would have been so much more compelling to watch them butt heads more and more and more until they learn how to work together and develop a mutual respect. that would have been fascinating instead of what they did did you ever watch suits the lawyer program right and there was a will they won't they between lawyer man and megan markle's character and then as soon as they hooked up i went oh okay
They've done it now. And I just stopped watching. That's the last episode I watched because I had no further interest. So the thing with Brad Pitt, though, is you say no one wants to. I think... It is the most natural Hollywood thing in the world to go lead character comes in, is charming, is a maverick, does well, seduces lady. And that's just like a nailed on plot point. That was probably one of the first things that went down on the draft script.
And he is kind of old, like he's unrealistically old for an F1 driver. And I saw on one of the trailers and they had a lady basically going, I thought you said that guy was old, but no, he's not old. He's young looking and hot. That was the mom. Right, okay. And then as viewers, you're like, okay, you have to parrot it back. Yes, he's super young looking and hot. And then...
The other thing, the other nitpicky thing that I will kind of go into this is that the number of jokes they make about his character being old. It was too much, because they weren't even fun, interesting, or creative jokes. It was just them going, haha, he's old.
Haha, he's old, but we are still trying to convince you that this 60-year-old man could drive a Formula One car and that this isn't just a self-insert fanfic that Brad Pitt really wanted to bring to the big screen. Okay, so that is something that will park. generally leading men in in hollywood that the f1 movie is not unique in that way that happens over and over again i'm sure tom cruise is not quite fighter pilot age either he's not fighter pilot age but
he can still actually legitimately do his stunts. He is the one actor that I will give a pass on being old and still doing action movies because he actually jumped between two planes for this final Mission Impossible movie. So just to call Christina out, by the way, there is a 14 year age difference between us. And over the course of the Miami weekend, I would say there were 87 references to my decrepit age. And also.
I live in a house of teenagers. My age as the subject of mirth has no limits. So I find that mocking realistic. Realistic, yes. But in a scripted film, I want it to at least be creative. Give me funny quips about somebody being old, but don't just repeatedly do the line, oh, you're old.
So I always say to Matt that he's of the age now that if he has an incident, if he falls down, he's taken a fall or he's had a fall. And that's the crucial change in language because he's old. But yeah, so I honestly. From everything you've said, it sounds like it's exactly the mix of brilliant and naff that I'm expecting. And I think if I can park that technically for a little while.
and enjoy the movie in the first run. And then I think I want to like immediately see it again with a notepad and pen and just pick out every, every little detail. So the first pass through, you know, maybe even if I give it like eight, nine, 10 out of 10. I'm still going to tear it apart as an F1 fan. And I think we're entitled to do that if we go into it in the right spirit. So, Christina, thank you so much for this review. It was quite meaty, actually. I'm glad I've heard your opinion.
Now, as I go into it, I think that's improved the experience for me. Go and follow Christina at TikTok. Not that she needs it. There's already like 120,000 followers over on TikTok. 125. Thank you very much. How did that happen? You're a megastar over there on TikTok and on Instagram. You post a lot of great stuff on there. And you'll always see stuff about different motorsports events around the world because Christina just hates going home, I think, is the...
is the moral. She's always out and about. Go and follow me at Spanners Ready on all platforms. And we're going to have a news show on Sunday. Remember, you can come and see us in Silverstone. There'll be a link in the show notes. We're on Saturday. At 7pm, we're going to fire up our microphones. We're going to record an episode, not about the race, like a general episode. And we're going to do a quiz as well. So come and join us there. £15 cover.
and you can get some drinks and pizza there, and we'll try and find somewhere to have a beer afterwards too. So click that, come and see us, and I'm going to be in and around Silverstone. I'm not sure how much I'll be at the track, but I will be there, so look out for my silly little face. And whenever we see you next, work hard, be kind, and have fun. This was Missed Apex Podcast.
Long here, sitting next to me in the back of a Bell 212 helicopter, about to give your team the go on a jungle training exercise. What's your gut saying? Not for you? Turn the volume down. Or stay here and see how far you could go with leadership training unlike anywhere else. Go, go, go! Still listening? You belong here. Army, recruiting now. Search Army jobs.