One: Quand les pilotes jouent avec la mort

Often many an unenlightened fan dismisses the notion of a documentary as being boring, especially one to do with racing. "Au contra-ire" my skeptical friend, I heartily recommend this to you, for it has all the ingredients of a regular movie - excitement, passion, true events, story of individuals willing to go past the edge, push the envelope and draw us into their piercing journey. One gets to learn about many of the sports legends, their views and how major events have shaped it. We get brief lessons into the history of F1 and for any fan - as well as newbie to the sport - this is mandatory knowledge and helps us appreciate to a high degree the ultimate of man & machine together and what they face.

This was an excellent documentary. I have recommended it to people with the advice, "you know a documentary is good if you will find it interesting even if you aren't interested in the subject matter". I think almost anyone would find this documentary very interesting.

I was a child of the 70s and remember seeing F1 races on TV, and remember the big names of the era from my childhood watching. This brought all of that back and filled in a lot of the details about the decades from 1970-2000 that I have learned as an adult.

The timing of the film was very well executed, not spending too long in any period but also including important events.

The voice-over was well-paced and measured, and had just the right intonation to induce suspense at the right times.

The effects in the soundtrack captured racing mechanics at its best. The music soundtrack captured the progression of time well.

My only criticism (and why I give it 8 and not 9 or 10 stars) is that they put just a bit too much focus on the safety of the sport... at times it feels like it is a documentary about racing car safety and not ... racing. Still, it doesn't err too far in this direction, so I still feel it is worthy of an 8 for any racing fan.

Through this documentary we understand the evolution of F1, its safety rules, the influence of business and sponsorship, and of course we learn about some of the legendary battles that made this sport loved all over the world.

However, having watched it and enjoyed it, in the end I got the feeling that the producers must have realized that they would end up with a very long documentary (truly rich F1 history!) and to prevent that they started to speed up the story right in the years I wanted to see the most - the Ayrton Senna ones...

In spite of that, it does present F1 in a clever new perspective that not many documentaries have shown us already and because of this those who like F1 or car racing in general will surely enjoy watching it.

1: Life on the Limit is brilliantly narrated by Michael Fassbender, who is able to keep hold of a compelling story.

The archive footage is outstanding, the political upbringing of the sport's safety, to the dangerous cars and tracks and the legends who changed the game is brilliant!

People who are unfamiliar with Formula 1 will still be able to find enjoyment, and possibly inspiration from the film. Without a doubt, the most interesting parts are the safety and the relationship between James Hunt and Niki Lauda.

It is familiar in places, due to strong performances - the film indulges you into the world of Formula 1 racing and it's deadly legacy.

The film's moral question still holds to this date. 'Would you take the safest car, or the car that is dangerous but drives the fastest?'.

1: Life on the Limit is well directed, brilliantly narrated with a certain charisma that is truly outstanding. The archival footage is breathtaking, and the interviews of legendary racers are inspirational.

It follows in the lines of Rush' and Senna' which are both exuberant films. 1: Life on the Limit has a definite place in Formula 1 entertainment.

Just to clarify that I would have rated this excellent documentary at 8.0 but marked up to 10. 1 out of 10? Really? As an avid fan of f1 during the golden area I found this an epic watch. Brundles amazing escape in the Jordan at the start had nothing to do with fortune and everything to do with the evolution of the sport over many years. Rewind to the birth and beginning of F1 and get ready to be shocked, awed and inspired as we progress through generations gone by. Reliving the harrowing moments where legends are lost sends shivers down your spine and makes you appreciate the levels of in car safety reached in the modern era. If, like me, you dig the engineering as well as the racing you will enjoy this doc.