Less death, more social media: Formula One films decades apart reveal a changed world | Emma John

Sat, 28 Jun 2025

The new Brad Pitt F1 movie offers a glossy exhilarating ride but its 1960s predecessor Grand Prix goes beneath the bonnet

‘Let’s try to get the season off to a good start, shall we? Drive the car. Don’t try to stand it on its bloody ear.”

Have you watched the movie? It’s about a rule-breaking American Formula One driver, the kind who blows past blue flags and crashes into his own teammate. You must have heard of it. They shot it in real race cars, across some of the most prestigious circuits in the world. It even had contemporary world championship drivers making notable cameos on the track.