Netflix’s new six-part series reviewed · RaceFans
The 2010 film documentary on the life of three-times Formula 1 world champion Ayrton Senna made an impression on one of the actors who stars in a new dramatisation of his life.
“It was wall-to-wall Brazilians in that cinema,” recalled Kaya Scodelario in a recent interview. “They were crying and shouting at the screen every time [Alain] Prost came up. It was the most emotional, passionate cinema experience of my life.”
The special place Senna occupies in the hearts of many F1 fans, his native Brazilians especially, can hardly be understated. Now, just past the 30-year anniversary of his death, Netflix is seeking to recreate the success of Asif Kapadia’s 2010 movie, right down to the title, albeit in a six-part scripted series.
This is a novel undertaking in one obvious respect. The arrival of Senna in 2010 prompted a rush of motorsport documentaries from ‘1: Life on the Limit’ to Netflix’s hit series ‘Drive to Survive’. But television producers have largely steered clear of attempting to recreate races, leaving that to the makers of films such as ‘Rush’ and ‘Ford vs Ferrari’ (aka ‘Le Mans 66’).
You can’t fault Netflix’s ambition in trying to recreate not only most of Senna’s F1 cars but several of those he raced before he became a grand prix driver. It’s a pity the same breadth of venues wasn’t available to them – even those without a deep knowledge of Britain’s junior motorsport series in the eighties will spot all the action takes place at the same venue.
The programme makers have clearly gone to great lengths to recreate the cars, overalls and other period details. They have also worked hard to recreate famous key incidents faithfully, such as Senna’s collisions with Prost or the barrier at Portier in Monaco.
The special effects are not quite up to ‘Rush’ standards, and that bar is likely to rise even higher when the official ‘F1’ film appears next year. But when ‘Senna’s modern footage is spliced with original video from period the gulf in quality between the two can’t help but distract the eye.
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But for all the effort lavished on the race footage, that is arguably not the point of the series. “Senna”, made with the blessing of his family, is intended to “reveal his personality and personal relationships,” say Netflix. We therefore see more of the other Sennas, his romantic life and professional relationships.
As a result, the storytellers faced the challenge of introducing many characters in a short space of time: his family, partners, rivals, team mates, bosses, media and assorted others. As a result they resort to documentary-style captions to introduce some faces, which intrudes on the drama somewhat.
Many of the dramatic highs are supplied by actual events. On top of that there are a few creations which turn significant developments into moments of drama. The FIA assembly at which team principals sombrely declare their drivers for the upcoming season is a useful device to tell the will-he-won’t-he story of Senna’s appearance in the 1990 championship. The karaoke bar scene where Senna and McLaren boss Ron Dennis persuade Honda to supply their engines is a more predictable affair.
The retelling of Senna’s racing career and the circumstances which led to his untimely death covers much the same significant points as the 2010 film, with a few differences. The narrative begins five years earlier, with Senna missing out on the 1979 karting world championship to Peter Koene. FISA (now FIA) president Jean-Marie Balestre is identified from the outset as the malevolent force seeking to undermine Senna, though his motives are never really explored beyond, later, wanting Prost to win.
It’s hard to argue with Balestre being cast as the villain of the piece. But the depiction of Prost, a four-times world champion, as a driver of marginal ability who relied on superior cars to win, is harsh and simplistic. Prost is shown taunting Senna with limp threats (‘I can be lucky in Australia’) and readily agreeing with a journalist who diminishes his driving ability. It borders on Senna fan-fiction at times.
Motorsport fans will find other cases of ‘Senna’ pushing the line between reality and dramatisation too far. Special mention must go to the Martin Brundle fans depicted as something close to football hooligans, which is pure pantomime stuff.
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‘Senna’ is a serviceable, polished drama which is noteworthy for its detailed recreations of key moments of racing action. But it sits in the shadow of the 2010 documentary which told largely the same story more efficiently, accurately and even emotionally.
It’s a testament to the enduring appeal of Senna that interest in his life shows little sign of waning three decades after his death. Another new documentary on his earlier years, this time focusing on his kart racing, is now in production.
“Senna” will be available to view on Netflix from November 29th
Senna series: Official trailer
Senna series: Making the cars
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