Senna directed by Asif Kapadia (Universal Pictures, Studio Canal, and Working Title Films, PG-13, 106 minutes)
Starring Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost,
Frank Williams, and Ron Dennis.
Motor Sports in the Blood
Whenever I feel
the need to impress a new acquaintance, I often find myself telling stories of
my dad and uncles. You see, my father (before he met my mother) raced
hydroplanes. As a child, my dad would take me to the pits during Seafair and
while I marveled at the loud engines and sleek boat frames, my dad would
socialize with drivers, mechanics, and boat owners.
Despite my family’s comprehensive history in motor sports and my early love for race (I collected matchbox cars as a kid), I never developed into the next generation of Richards racers. Credit my grandmother for exhibiting enough worry for the safety of her sons or my mother for convincing my father to get out of hydroplanes before he killed himself, but I never stepped foot in a competitive race.
With this
history, I viewed Senna, the new
documentary by award-winning filmmaker Asif Kapadia in a unique light.
A World Champion
Chronicling the
quick rise to fame and premature death of three-time world champion, Ayrton
Senna, Senna documents the serene
faith of a driver who danced with death every time he strapped into a car and the
film also exposes some of the politics that led to the fateful crash which took
Senna’s life much too soon.
The product of an
upper-middle-class Brazilian family, Senna expressed a love for race from an
early age and his family promoted the hobby entering him in regional go-karting
races. A prodigious talent, Senna quickly rose through the racing ranks and
debuted in Formula One in 1984.
For those unaware
of Formula One, the premier open-wheeled racing league in the world, the league
operates in a team format with owners and engineers hiring the best drivers
around the world. Each team develops cars with automobile manufacturers, with
money and a certain set of safety regulations acting as the only fenceposts.
As such, the best
funded teams typically find themselves on the winner’s podium. Imagine the
shock of the old guard when Ayrton Senna began winning races on an underfunded
and less-than-optimal machine.
As Senna became a
mainstay in the league, he worked his way to McLaren-Honda as a teammate to
Frenchman Alain Prost. In the next few years, Proust and Senna became bitter
rivals despite their status as teammates. Having won three world championships,
Senna moved to Williams-Renault in 1994 as the team had developed the fastest
car in Formula One history.
Sadly, Senna
never completed the year since he died in an unassisted crash during the 1994
San Marino Grand Prix.
Driving by God’s Assistance or a Dance
with Death?
Senna’s driving
style inspired many but also drew criticism. As the movie poetically depicts,
Senna’s devout faith in God influenced the way he drove a race car. He waited
longer before braking into a turn; he accelerated quicker out of a turn. For
many, such a driving style teetered on the edge of human capability.
While watching the documentary, one can easily conclude that Senna dared drivers to block him and force an accident. Whenever a driver revealed even a sliver of space, Senna took it and demanded that the other driver back down lest both drivers crash.
While watching the documentary, one can easily conclude that Senna dared drivers to block him and force an accident. Whenever a driver revealed even a sliver of space, Senna took it and demanded that the other driver back down lest both drivers crash.
Such a style drew
harsh criticism from Senna’s arch-rival Alain Prost. In the movie, Prost
claims that Senna’s belief in God allowed him to drive recklessly.
Meanwhile, the
rise of computer technology allowed engineers to break the barriers of racing
science. In the 1993 season, cars debuted with corrective technology allowing
drivers to push the limits of speed without worry of losing control of the car.
As the 1994
season began, Formula One’s governing body decreed a ban on corrective computer
technology which evened the playing field but also developed higher levels of
danger with the speed of the cars.
With Senna’s
driving style and the reckless regulations of Formula One, disaster would soon
result. At the beginning of practice for the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, the
drivers knew a dangerous weekend would unfold when the young, up-and-coming
driver, Rubens Barichello, missed a turn and found his car launched into guard
rail. Shocked, bruised, yet ultimately healthy, Barichello escaped with his
life.
A day later,
however, another driver would not be so lucky. During the final qualifying run,
Roland Ratzenberger lost control of his vehicle and crashed into the outside
wall. With a basal skull fracture, Ratzenberger lost his life.
After two
horrendous accidents, archival footage reveals a tense and visibly shaken
Senna. Despite the danger, Senna qualified for the pole position and completed
6 laps before losing control and fatally crashing on lap 7.
Whether Senna’s
reckless driving style ran out of luck or the increased technology added too
much danger to the sport, the events at San Marino led to Formula One issuing a
mea culpa and commissioning research
on bringing safety to the sport.
As a film, Senna is informative, fast-paced, and
heartbreaking. In many ways, despite the fact that I have never considered it;
Senna’s death became the harbinger for my eventual phasing out of motor sports
from my passions.
I love my family
and I appreciate the talent it takes to safely win a race. Yet I find the
danger of the sport hard to reconcile. Sadly, the car accident is one of the
thrilling parts of a race. Just watch “Sportscenter”. You’ll see highlights of
the checkered flag and all of the accidents that occurred during the race.
Ultimately, I find such an occurrence unsettling and telling of human
character. I loved motor sports, but I think I also loved the accidents too
much. As such, I am glad that I never followed the footsteps of my father and
uncles.
As for the film, Senna gorgeously compiles archival
footage from Ayrton Senna’s life and creates a compelling narrative about the
driver, his devout faith, and a broken organization. If you are interested in
motor spots, you need to watch this movie. Even if you don’t care one way or
another about the sport, Senna is
informative, entertaining, heartbreaking, and worth your time.
Verdict: 5 out of 5
---
Posted by: Donovan Richards
Affiliate Links:
Nice review - I was very moved by this film. I just want to mention that although the precise cause of Senna's fatal accident has never been proven beyond a doubt, it was a failure of the steering that was the most likely culprit. It was not only the first season that Williams had used power steering, but Ayrton had requested an adjustment to the steering column, and this was done incompetently (as shown in the Italian criminal case). So essentially, the greatest F1 driver died through no fault of his own, as many acknowledged, including team owner Frank Williams. Senna became a passenger in the car instead of the pilot. The fact that he did not turn away further from the barrier substantiates this, as this would have saved him.
ReplyDelete