F1: The Movie has burst its way onto the movie market in impressive fashion. With Oscar-winners Brad Pitt and Javier Bardem leading the ensemble, this high-octane experience has defied expectations, earning over $140 million globally in its opening weekend. With both audiences and critics raving about this film, it’s sure to turn some casual viewers into Formula One fans, and turn some F1 fans into movie buffs.
The adrenaline-fueled spectacle perfectly captures the thrill of racing while delivering compelling and complex characters and heart-stopping action sequences. So, if you want to keep riding that buzz and dive deeper into the world of car movies, we have you covered. Here are 5 other films that will rev your engine and satisfy your need for speed.
5. Days of Thunder (1990)
After the triumphant success of Top Gun (1986), it didn’t take long for Tom Cruise and Tony Scott to team up for another adrenaline-filled thrill ride. In fact, Hollywood was waiting four years for it. In 1990, the actor/director duo brought forth Days of Thunder, switching the skies for the track. While this movie didn’t quite live up to the success of Top Gun, it is still lauded as one of the greatest racing movies of all time by many racing movie enthusiasts.
Days of Thunder puts the enigmatic Cruise behind the wheel as Cole Trickle, a hotshot rookie whose raw speed outpaces his teamwork skills. In order to fully prosper, Cole has to learn how to control his skill while juggling a romance with neurologist Dr. Claire Lewicki (Nicole Kidman), while his ambitious owner Tim Daland (Randy Quaid) and veteran crew commander Harry Hodge (Robert Duvall) attempt to curb his wild tendencies. Tony Scott’s kinetic direction throws you straight into the NASCAR chaos, creating a template for racing films that blend high-octane thrills with emotional stakes – a formula that F1: The Movie clearly draws from. Pure ’90s adrenaline with heart, it’s essential viewing for any racing movie fan. And with rumours of a sequel twirling around Hollywood, now is the perfect time to revisit this Tony Scott classic.
4. Drive (2011)
Although it is not a racing flick like F1: The Movie, Drive has become one of the most iconic car movies of all time. This gritty and violent neo-noir thriller may not appeal to those strictly looking for a track movie, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an expert in vehicle mastery on screen. Ryan Gosling stars as a nameless Hollywood stunt driver who moonlights as a getaway driver for criminals, becoming entangled in a dangerous heist that threatens both him and his neighbour Irene (Carey Mulligan).
What’s truly different about Drive compared to other car movies is that this film isn’t solely about speed. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It’s a slow burn character study that goes berserk in the right moments. Gosling’s character operates on a much more inconspicuous path, relying on precision timing and intimate knowledge of Los Angeles streets rather than raw velocity. But when the situation demands it, he can put his foot on the pedal and unleash his true driving prowess in some of cinema’s most tense and stylish chase sequences ever caught on film.
3. Ford v Ferrari (2019)
Ford v Ferrari was the last racing movie to really enthral audiences before F1: The Movie lit up the screen. Although Michael Mann‘s biopic Ferrari seemed set to prosper in 2023, it evidently couldn’t live up to James Mangold‘s more exhilarating story, which was also based on true events but received the Hollywood treatment to ramp things up a notch. Much F1: The Movie, Ford v Ferrari charts the story of top tier racing but also opens our eyes to the people behind the scenes as well as those behind the wheel. American carmaker Carroll Shelby, played by Matt Damon, collaborates with British racer Ken Miles (Christian Bale) to build a race car that can beat Ferrari at the storied 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. Together, they have to overcome the demanding technical requirements of endurance racing as well as the bureaucratic meddling of Ford’s corporate leaders, who have no idea what it takes to succeed.
2. Grand Prix (1966)
No list of iconic car movies would be complete without John Frankenheimer‘s thrilling motorsport drama, Grand Prix. Released in 1966, this film put Frankenheimer on the map as the go to director for car action. As a result, he went on to make vehicle heavy movies like French Connection II, Ronin, and The Hire.
Grand Prix follows four Formula One drivers as they compete in several Grand Prix races, navigating rivalries, romance, and the ever-present danger of death on the track. These drivers are Italian Nino Barlini (Antonio Sabàto), Frenchman Jean-Pierre Sarti (Yves Montand), British driver Scott Stoddard (Brian Bedford), and American driver Pete Aron (James Garner). Thanks to Frankenheimer’s inventive cinematography, which thrusts the audience right into the cockpit, Grand Prix continues to stand up against motorsports movies that make use of modern technological capabilities even after all these years. Intriguingly, both in concept and execution, Grand Prix is actually a cinematic forerunner of F1: The Movie, blending a fictional narrative against the backdrop of real Grand Prix circuits.
1. Rush (2013)
While F1: The Movie is dramatic and tense at times, it is layered with a positive message throughout, celebrating collaboration. Ron Howard‘s Rush is a deftly different tale, and as a result, the octane is well-and-truly ramped up. This critically acclaimed motorsport movie reveals how individual obsession and rivalry can push human limits to the very edge of survival.
Chronicling the fierce battle between F1 legends James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda (Daniel Brühl) during the legendary 1976 season, Howard’s visceral masterpiece deftly captures both the glamorous playboy Hunt and the methodical perfectionist Lauda whose contrasting personalities fuel a competition that transcends sport itself. Lauda’s devastating crash at the Nürburgring provides the film’s emotional center, but his incredible recovery and resolve to resume racing a few weeks later highlight the unwavering will that distinguishes winners from losers. With cinematography that puts you inches from disaster and Hans Zimmer‘s throbbing score that amplifies every turn, Rush explores the psychological toll of excellence in ways that make it the ideal antithesis to F1’s more team-focused story.
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