Directed by Asif Kapadia

Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost

Senna documents the racing career of Brazilian F1 driver Ayrton Senna from his first races in the sport until his death in 1994, showcasing his battles with rival Alain Prost, the sports governing body the FIA and his desire to be the best.

Senna is an interesting look at how Senna’s career in F1 unfolded, at how his undoubted talent swiftly moved him through the ranks to the top teams, at how Alain Prost pushed him and offering a possible series of events led to the accident that he died from. The film avoids a talking-heads style, choosing to lay interviews and insights across footage, which works far better. Ayrton himself comes across as almost prophetic with his concerns over driver safety, especially as it is spoken about highlighting audience figures – which, knowing what was to come for him, I found quite eerie. Ayrton is as charismatic a personality here as I remember him when I was discovering F1 and his final moments are handled with grace, leaving the viewer to immediately know how much of a loss this was.

Senna is not a film solely for F1 fans, it is a tale of a talent that united a nation in support and then in grief, for a man that transcended the boundaries of the sport that he was born to be a champion in.

 

If you like this then maybe try:

 

TT: Closer to the Edge (I haven’t seen this yet but I’ve heard good things about this documentary of the Isle of Man TT race)