By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Asif Kapadia
Country: united_kingdom
Year: 2011
Running time: 106
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1424432/
Diane says: “SENNA, a doc about Brazilian race car driver Ayrton Senna, is well-paced and has some pathos, but it isn’t very deep. One thing that makes it enjoyable is that Senna is awfully handsome. He was the pride of Brazil, and the love object of countless female Japanese fans.
“Much of the film concerns Senna’s rivalry with a French racer and one-time team member, and the politics of Formula One racing. Some technical terms that should be explained, aren’t. What I liked best: getting a sense of the emotional/physiological impact of winning at such a tense sport. After one win that required intense focus and skill, Senna said that in the last few laps, ‘I saw God.’ Is that the rapture of ‘flow?’
“SENNA covers the champion’s career from 1978-1994. One question I haven’t been able to answer about this doc is, Why now? 3 cats”
Toni
says: “Paul Elsnau and I recently saw this one both thought it was and excellent film.
“What I was most impressed with the documentary SENNA included (adding to Diane Young’s review):
“The choices of the being able to tell a strong chronological story voices with home movies and footage in an edgy way with great editing choices from scene to scene, clip to clip, with some voice over that was not over the top (as many docs have).
“In a variation of a talking heads approach, the audience is observing the stories over time from 1978-1994 of the late Aryton Senna and Alain Prost and the F1 and culture around them.
“The Brazilian and other worldly soundscapes beneath the film which are gentle and build up in the tragic end (beautiful closing sequences).
“The development of the characters and time period between the 2 rivals from Brazil and France showing the politics in the industry and these 2 unique men racing for somewhat different reasons.
“Therefore, while it was about F1 racing it, like the film BUCK was about a horse whisperer, did not require you to have much interest or experience with the subject to appreciate the struggle (and the enhancements and limitations of technology).
“I think it has been quite a good year for docs!. 5 cats
“(watched on Netflix Streaming)”