Senna

I had been a Fan of Ayrton when I was a child. I distinctly remember watching the F1 highlights with my dad. My dad was a seasonal fanatic of sports and kept updating me with the news from the papers/sports magazines and the television.

To relive the moments of Ayrton (the idol) in this emotionally gripping documentary was unbelievably comforting. The script and flow of the events were so flawlessly presented taking one's memory into the Time travel of decade gone by. It was nothing short of Excellence in execution.

The documentary dissects Ayton's persona in a subtle way, making it the most compelling Biography of all times. The back-ground score by Antonio Pinto was Enthralling and Sensual delight.

This is not to be missed, sad that I had been to the cinema only on the final day when it was shown-much regret the delay. Nevertheless, Its a true Masterpiece which portrays the subtle sadness of a legend's demise in a sweet throat stifling moments.

For me, this was an extremely emotional film. At the age of 10, Senna was my idol, and I was fortunate enough to be there to see him take his final victory. Reliving those moments on the big screen was a truly exhilarating (and tear-jerking) experience.

I have consumed volumes of Senna-related material over the years, so to say that this film adds something substantive means a lot. Of course, the stories themselves won't be new to a lot of motor racing fans, but there is something delicious and comforting in the retelling of a beautiful fable. And the film makers are to be congratulated for paring a complex story down to its dramatic essentials, while maintaining the necessary context and without reducing it to a Hollywood narrative. They certainly did a much better job of conveying what Senna was to my girlfriend than I could ever do. The fact that she thoroughly enjoyed the film - and came out of it with a good understanding of many of the nuances of Senna's life - despite being ardently anti-racing speaks volumes.

If I have any criticism, it is the lack of audio/visual sync up in many of the onboard shots. And in one shot there are audible gear changes when Senna is supposedly stuck in sixth gear. For the casual viewer these count for little, but for a racing connoisseur these mistakes are like nails on a chalkboard. It's hard to believe that the film was previewed by anyone with a deep understanding of motor sport. One could also criticize the film for telling only one side of a complex history (Senna's), but given the film's scope that is no fault at all in my opinion.

All in all, this is a beautiful documentary. It is well-paced, with a perfect running time and wonderful score. I highly recommend it, to racing fans and film fans alike.

It's true you know, you really don't have to be a fan of Motor Racing to enjoy, be fascinated by or touched by Senna. Much like Julian Temple's Sex Pistols music documentary encompassed the climate of the times, looked at the press and public reactions to something making waves in the entertainment world, so too Senna is dealing with more than a big name racing driver who tragically lost his life at Imola racing circuit in 1994. Director Asif Kapadi and his team have constructed an in depth and poignant picture that follows Ayrton Senna of Brazil from his humble Karting beginnings, right up to that fateful day on 1st May 94 when a country as one sank to its knees in mourning for the man who was their one joy in a country full of hurt and political confusion.

Ayrton was a genius in the rain.

On the driving/racing side the fascination comes from learning how Senna pushed himself to greatness, a very driven man who was never shy in coming forward. He challenged authority when needed and his on going career spat with Alain Prost often made the news for the wrong reasons, these are insightful and excellent splinters of the film. Incredible feats achieved in the car, like how he finally achieved one of his greatest ambitions, and won the Brazillian Grand Prix with a broken gear box stuck in 6th gear! Things he did seemed like magic to his millions of fans, very religious he felt very close to God, some of his driving had the air of a deity about it! Of course it's all building towards the tragedy, where it hits hard and even there there's a mysticism about proceedings. Foreboding warnings that came when Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger was killed the day before Senna, the Brazillian's reaction unerringly prophetic.

He would take the car beyond its design capabilities.

It's not warts and all, Kapadi has said that the Senna family oversaw production and much of the maverick driver's persona has been smoothed over. It's also worth mentioning that it's no rags to riches story, Senna was no Slumdog about to become a Millionaire. But this is real, a real man with a real interesting story, a story strung together with real clips and real home footage, not some hack job where a number of people from the same field share their own thoughts on a star that no longer shines. The Blu-ray release offers both an extended cut and the theatrical release, the former contains an extra hour but nothing of significance is gained. That cut is probably more for die hard F1 fans. At 1hr 45m the theatrical cut does an exceptional job by always being compelling with not a dull moment in sight. Quite simply this is one of the best sports person documentaries out there. 9/10

A must see for formula 1 and motor-sport fans. Formula 1 used to be different from what we see today and, in addition to this unique insight into Ayrton's life, it also brings a lot of F1's skeletons out of the closet.

I have never watched a documentary so moving. Right from the brilliant on-board footage of the racing cars to very real narrative by Ayrton himself.

Brilliant work. The entire film is made with archived footage, most of which is very rare. The filmmakers do a great job of bringing some of the key characters in F1, and in Ayrton's personal life to the forefront.

This documentary is flawless, it's narrative perfect, it's thrilling, I could not imagine another way of depicting this awesome history. The soundtrack is great, the documentary flows in such a wonderful way, real drama, marvelous histories, some funny parts as well, it's life in it's beauty and it's true form.

We get to know so many things about the formula 1 politics and internal struggles at that period.

Memorable sentences from the documentary:

Senna: -¨Formula 1 is too much money, too much politics¨

Jean-Marie Balestre (FIA ex-President): -¨The best decision is my decision¨

It's so exciting to see the rivalry between Alain Prost and Senna, possibly one of the greatest duels on the history of sports. There are few movies/documentaries that I would give a ¨11¨ out of 10 and this is one, together with amazing documentary Bus 174, from José Padilha (the director of Elite Squad).

A documentary is good when is true to reality, and is awesome when is great to watch as ¨Senna¨ is, a perfect tribute to such a hero. The history of Senna is so inspiring, he is a true champion by all means, as a professional, and as a human being, that's way this is for sure a "must see movie".