Because Joseph Kosinski helped turn “Top Gun: Maverick” into a mega summer hit turned Best Picture nominee, there were early questions about whether his follow-up “F1: The Movie” could do the same thing. However, while movies about boxing, wrestling, horse racing, and other sports have been recognized in some way by the Academy over the years, auto racing films have rarely crossed that finish line.
At least so far, the good but not great reviews and the far from “Top Gun: Maverick” level box office projections suggest “F1: The Movie” will be no different, at least for Best Picture recognition. Nevertheless, a few craft nominations may be possible, which is better than what most racing movies have achieved in awards season.
Yet, despite this checkered history, the last 10+ years have already seen a few racing films take a real shot at the Oscars, with one actually winning the award. Here are the three contenders, or would-be contenders, and how they line up with their newest challenger.
“Ford v Ferrari”
While movies about auto racing in various forms have been box office hits, “Ford v Ferrari” is the first — and thus far the only one—to receive a Best Picture nomination as well. And while other sports, like boxing, already had movies that went the Oscar distance decades ago, it took until 2019 for “Ford v Ferrari” to bring sports cars to the Oscars.
By most metrics, it probably shouldn’t have happened since “Ford v Ferrari” didn’t receive a single above-the-line nomination aside from Best Picture, only had four nominations overall, and wasn’t the biggest box office hit among the nominees. Yet through the direction of James Mangold – whose own time for Oscar recognition would come for his next biopic “A Complete Unknown” – craftsmanship that resulted in Best Film Editing and Best Sound Editing Oscar wins, and stars in Matt Damon and Christian Bale, who are no strangers at pushing films into Best Picture, this technically became the most decorated auto racing film in history.
In many ways, “F1: The Movie” is inviting itself to be a duplicate of “Ford v Ferrari.” It, too, has a former “Oceans 11” star playing a racing legend forced into retirement before a big comeback, in this case, Brad Pitt instead of Damon. It, too, has a more hot-headed British racer who has to be guided towards his big breakthrough, in this case, new star Damson Idris instead of the veteran Bale. It, too, features an Irish actress in the leading female role – in this case, Kerry Condon, rather than Caitriona Balfe – and an ultra-rich and colorful team owner, played by Javier Bardem instead of Tracy Letts.
Most of all, both “F1: The Movie” and “Ford v Ferrari” are labeled as “Dadcore” movies, designed for older male viewers – such as Oscar voters – to embrace, perhaps the hardest of all, as a throwback to old-school filmmaking. Still, “F1: The Movie” is also new school in a way that “Ford v Ferrari” didn’t try to or have to be, as Kosinski goes the extra mile to make audiences feel like they’re racing alongside Pitt and Idris, just as they felt like they were flying with Tom Cruise and his flight team.
It will be seen soon whether it works on a “Top Gun: Maverick” level for most audiences, even if critics are more skeptical this time. It might also be a tough sell with voters on a “Ford v Ferrari” level, although replicating its luck below the line may be enough of a win or place showing.
“Ferrari”
The other recent racing movie with Ferrari in the title was far different in tone, box office, and awards results. Instead of being a big studio and audience-friendly thrill ride, “Ferrari” was Michael Mann’s much moodier attempt to show a critical time period and race in the life of Ferrari’s founder. And like many of Mann’s recent films, it arrived with a lot of hype and high awards hopes, garnered a share of fans, but lacked sufficient support for widespread acclaim, strong word of mouth at the box office, or Oscar attention.
Nonetheless, it did come close to salvaging one major nomination, as Penelope Cruz’s work off the track as Ferrari’s wife hovered on the Best Supporting Actress bubble all season. Yet despite a late SAG nomination, Cruz missed the cut, and “Ferrari” was shut out on Oscar nomination morning, unlike its half-namesake predecessor.
“F1: The Movie” doesn’t have a director as decorated as Mann, but it does have a leading man in Pitt who actually is a 60-year-old – unlike when the younger Adam Driver was made up to play Enzo Ferrari in his late 50s – and has its own past Oscar-nominated actress. Of course, it is also opening in the middle of summer instead of Christmas and is meant to be more of a visual spectacle than a character study – and as such, shouldn’t get snickers like “Ferrari” did in some online circles for its climactic deadly crash. If “Ferrari” isn’t similar to “F1: The Movie” or “Ford v Ferrari,” perhaps it somewhat resembles another recent racing film – at least in its awards outcome.
“Rush”
Like “Ferrari,” “Rush” was helmed by a longtime big-name director with a few nominated films under his belt, Ron Howard. Like “Ferrari,” “Rush” was based on a true story about a famed time period in international racing, specifically the rivalry between Formula One racers Niki Lauda and James Hunt. And like “Ferrari,” while “Rush” didn’t receive enough praise or box office to get on the Best Picture bubble, it looked like it would still salvage a nomination for its standout supporting actor – in this case, first-time contender Daniel Bruhl instead of past winner Cruz – until a late snub.
In terms of the actual racing, Howard made “Rush” more of an “F1: The Movie“- like adrenaline rush, rather than a “Ferrari“- like drama, albeit not with the “Top Gun: Maverick” level of realism. Perhaps that made it too flashy and disposable for awards voters, aside from their recognition of Bruhl – the rare actor in this era to receive SAG, BAFTA, Critics’ Choice, and Golden Globe nominations without an Oscar nomination in the end. Nonetheless, “Rush” still had a fair share of critical acclaim – perhaps on the level “F1: The Movie” is shaping up for – and a share of fans who pushed it and Bruhl to get more recognition than they did.
When it comes to auto-racing films, modest critical approval, and box office-friendly audience love are usually the most important things they can win. “Ford v Ferrari” is the rare, if not only film to do both and more, while the likes of “Rush” and “Ferrari” have taken their best shots but fallen short in at least some areas. Even so, between those films, “F1: The Movie,” and other racing movies like “Gran Turismo,” a growing number of would-be racing champions are trying to reach a somewhat elusive big screen checkered flag. “F1: The Movie” is the next attempt to capture it on June 27th.
Have you seen “F1: The Movie” yet? If so, what did you think of it? Do you think it will be an Oscar contender? Please let us know in the comments section below and on Next Best Picture’s X account.
You can follow Robert and hear more of his thoughts on the Oscars & Film on X @Robertdoc1984
