F1, the movie: Marketing at Its Best

27 June, 2025

“Welcome to the human race,” cried the adorably dumb slogan of a now-forgotten film starring Sylvester Stallone as a retired race car driver pulled back onto the track to mentor a hotheaded young talent. Driven (2001, dir. Renny Harlin) has a better title and is, without question, more enjoyable when watched drunk, thanks to its mix of soap-melodrama, early-2000s techno, and absurd scenarios. But its glossier, more expensive counterpart, F1: The Movie (dir. Joseph Kosinski), is catching up fast.    

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Sonny Hayes (Pitt) was once a rising star in Formula 1, until a crash during a 1993 overtake on Ayrton Senna derailed his career. Thirty years later, an old teammate/rival (Javier Bardem) convinces him to return to the circuit to help salvage a team that hasn’t scored points in three years, and mentor a young, promising but inconsistent driver, Joshua Pierce (Damson Idris).

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Dragoș Marin published articles and film reviews on filmreporter.ro and colaborated in various specialized festivals and TV shows. In everyday life he's a prokect manager while continuing to stay connected to pop culture and to write about what he has to say.