It would be a challenge to contain the full and complete life of even a moderately interesting man in just a few brief cinematic minutes. If a man has lived in more than two cities, held more than three jobs and dated more than four women, the gift of that man’s life probably cannot be wrapped in a hundred and four minutes of celluloid. Yes, some biopics are extremely rewarding but normally they’re given more time and breathing space. Senna canters along at the speed of one of Senna’s six Monaco victories yet seems so effortless because of silky smooth editing and a great structure.
While the film does not cover everything, what Kapadia does reveal about dreaming, stubbornness, tenacity, fallibility, talent and death is something you will certainly wish to see. Senna showcases three of the qualities Senna brought to Formula One: massive talent in good conditions that became ethereal aptitude in the wet; total devotion to winning; and an intimate connection to God. These three subjects are thoroughly explored and even though the focus is firmly on one man, the people around him – including the doctor who befriends him and then has to watch him die – are given just enough room to feed into the story without getting in the way and creating unnecessary subplots.
Like James Cameron’s Titanic, everyone going to see Senna will know how the story ends. But in terms of tension, humanity, passion and plot Senna blows the huge ship out of the water. Sometimes it’s the commentary, sometimes it’s a close up shot of Senna’s face conveying what actors spend years trying to mimic, sometimes it’s archive footage. Then sometimes it’s watching Senna race around the track and getting to see just what an incredible driver he was. Not that you have to have even the faintest interest in motor racing (although there’s a high chance you’ll be hooked by the end of the film). Knowing how it ends only adds poignancy to the scenes where he talks about his faith in God and about a hoped-for future that we know will not be his.
Senna was a man’s man who just wanted to race cars and to do it well – sadly a far cry from the monotony of today’s races. He didn’t want to get involved in the politics of Formula One, but was pulled into it just the same, and more often than not he got the raw end of the deal. He was single minded, in that his aim was to win and never to accept second best. But unlike his clinical adversary Alain Prost, you never doubt there’s a sensitive person trapped inside his competitive nature.
Prost and former FIA President Jean-Marie Balestre are portrayed as arrogant, brash and full of hot air bravado, controlling the system against the maverick smaller man. The great rivalry between Senna and Prost plays a huge part in proceedings and, while the Frenchman may feel aggrieved that he is portrayed as such an antagonist, it is hardly surprising in a film about the Brazilian superstar. Also though, the footage doesn’t lie and his past actions firmly entrench him as a villainous weasel among the audience. The arc of their relationship and how it ends between the two however is well done by Kapadia and by Prost and Senna – above all their respect for each other never faded. In regards to Balestre and his apparent dislike of Senna, our hero may have got caught up in the big-money Formula One political machine, he may have spent his career sitting in a state of the art racing machine, but he was no machine himself, and when he doesn’t follow unjustified orders, we can only feel sympathy for him because he’s not being egotistical – he’s just following his own divine self-belief and morals and not disobeying biased authority.
There are no weak points in Senna but moments stand out, such as when he squirms while getting chatted up on live Brazilian TV by his future girlfriend; the primal scream he emits when he wins a gruelling race on home territory for the first time; when he has to find every bit of strength he possesses to lift a hard-won trophy; when he watches the death of fellow racing driver Roland Ratzinburger just one day before his own untimely death on the same racetrack at San Marino in 1994. He has to turn away from the screen – you won’t be able to.
The scenes leading up to Senna’s death are chilling. We’re shown shots of those close to him. Unlike the viewer of this film, they’re unaware of what’s about to happen. The footage of him shaking his head as he sits in a racing car he’s not happy with, moments from death, might make you think that he sensed something was about to go very badly wrong.
While Schumacher and Prost have more championships and grand prix wins, Senna was the champion of the people, always exciting to watch and a true racing driver sometimes not even in a tremendously competitive car. Even though he could never match the former two names’ statistics because of his shorter career, the great Brazilian still leads many of the percentage charts regarding pole positions converted to race wins etc. Faster than any other driver of his era, as his 41 grand prix wins and three world titles proved, Senna also had a ruthless streak but he was never malicious, just more determined than any other. With Senna, there is just one disappointment – that the man himself didn’t have a longer career and isn’t around now to enjoy this brilliant celebration of his brilliant life.
Summary
An emotional and poignant ode to one of sport’s greatest ever talents. Even for people who are not fans of motor sport this is an unmissable tribute to a true genius.
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