Senna is a documentary film which charts the life and untimely death of the Brazilian motor-racing champion, Ayrton Senna. For those who aren't familiar with the legend of Senna it just wouldn't be possible to completely sum up his impact on the world in a matter of paragraphs, that's why you need to watch this film. The film brings together Senna's professional life and personal life through his sublime and sometimes ruthless ability on the track, interviews from people that had known him and home videos that were provided by the Senna family. I won't share anymore about the film as I am not looking to provide you all with a second-rate critics perspective, instead I want to try and explain what the film meant to me and no doubt what this film may have meant to countless others.
My introduction to Formula One sadly came just after the tragic passing of Senna, as undoubtedly he would have been the driver I sat and watched with pure amazement and wonderment. Senna passed away following an accidental collision with the wall at the San Marino Grand Prix in June 1994. My first memory in fact is watching Damon Hill battling his way to the World Championship for Senna's Williams team in 1995. I can recall how much Senna was mentioned as I watched those early races, the sport was obviously still reeling from his loss and struggling to fully recover from what had happened during that infamous weekend in San Marino. If anything positive did come out of that weekend it was the crucial and needed improvements Formula One made in regards to safety, allowing teams to alter their cars fundamentally to place more of an emphasis on safety rather than speed. These improvements have been hugely successful with no fatalities occurring in sport during the years that have passed to date but the simmering argument is that with the death of Ayrton Senna also came the death of drivers like Senna ever gracing the sport again.
Ayrton Senna is widely regarded as the greatest Formula One driver of all time, a multiple champion who broke all kinds of records during his 165 races, notably winning the prestigious Monte Carlo Grand Prix a record six times. Senna raced like nobody had done previously in the sport, braking into corners later than anyone else thought possible, pushing the car to and beyond its very limits and taking each lap as if it was the last lap he would ever drive. This ultimate desire for perfection took Senna to both the very top of the sport but also cost him everything. During the Monte Carlo Grand Prix in 1988 Senna had built up a clear lead over his most fierce rival and then team-mate, Alain Prost, only to crash out as he pushed the car and himself over the limits. Senna had been told to slow down in order to not only protect the car but to lessen the chance of making a mistake that which necessary but that wasn't Senna's way. Senna continued to set fastest lap times lap after lap until at a crucial moment he lost his concentration and crashed into the wall throwing away an easy victory in the pursuit of perfection. Although Senna didn't pick up a victory that day it remains a poignant example of why so many people loved and adored Senna. He just wanted to race as he says himself, 'Pure driving, pure racing, that's what makes me happy'.
My early interest in Formula One was driven by the excitement of the racing, knowing that if there was a shower of rain or if a driver attacked the track in ways others wouldn't anything could happen, races could be won by a selection of drivers, it would literally depend on who wanted it the most. Of course the car was still the important component, but it was still possible for a car to be made better by its driver, to be pushed beyond its mechanical capabilities. But in the years that followed this was no longer the case, races could only be won by a couple of teams who had the funding to build more effective cars than its rivals. These are what I would call the 'Schumacher Years'.
Undoubtedly one of Formula One's greatest drivers, Michael Schumacher went on to win seven world championships but I can say that I can't have watched more than twenty races during those years. The reason why? Because the sport had lost its competitive edge, the racing was mundane, Schumacher's car with all its technological advancements was streets ahead of the rest, all he had to do was push the accelerator and the car would proceed to do the rest. It says everything that his most consistent competitor during the majority of this time were his team-mates in the same car, but even on the rare occasions when they got in front of Schumacher on the track they were ordered to let him past so he could win the races. Again I am not criticising Schumacher's abilities or achievements as a racing driver I am just commenting that the racing I had loved so much in those early years was gone, racing was no longer the racing Ayrton Senna would have described and without that racing Formula One just became an expensive procession.
My favourite Senna quote to come out of the film was that, 'If you no longer go for a gap that exists, you are no longer a racing driver,'. The technological and safety advancements during the Schumacher years had erased this gap Senna was referring to, cars couldn't even get close enough to other cars in order to overtake. My love affair with Formula One was over before it even started, I would have given anything to watch the Formula One of the 1980s where drivers were rewarded for their bravery and ability instead of relying on technology to get them through race to race. This was true until the emergence of a driver who is the closest thing Formula One has ever had to Ayrton Senna, a young Englishman called Lewis Hamilton.
Hamilton arrived on the Formula One grid in 2007 taking a race seat alongside former World Champion Fernando Alonso in a team where Senna himself enjoyed his most successful years, McLaren. Hamilton immediately drew comparisons with Senna during his inaugural season, overtaking cars where it had previously been thought impossible, taking his car to the very limits of what pundits felt were safe. Hamilton like Senna races with the heart of a pure racing driver where speed and victory are the only words that make sense to them. Hamilton has since gone on to become a world champion in his own right, gaining praise and negativity in the same vein as Senna's driving attracted. As I watched the film Senna I couldn't help but draw my own comparisons between Senna and Hamilton, especially as the film drew to its conclusion.
Nobody can be sure exactly what happened in Senna's cockpit on that afternoon in San Marino, officially it has been stated that his steering pole snapped causing him to lose control of the car before colliding with the wall. I was particularly interested to read about his team mate, Damon Hill's, views on what happened. Hill believed that in the pursuit of speed and gaining the edge over his rivals Senna went too quickly into the corner, losing control on cold tires, causing him to crash at Tamburello corner. I wouldn't want to speculate but you can't help but consider the views of Hill given not only the character Senna was but also the way he went into each lap of a race. As I watched the tragedy unfold on screen I wondered if Formula One has now found the perfect balance of safety and competitiveness, especially in the case of Hamilton. Not only do we have Hamilton but a growing crop of younger drivers who drive with the same spirit and passion as Senna such as Vettel, Kobayashi, Di Resta and Perez to name a few. Drivers who have the heart of a racer, the ability to push their cars past their peaks but are also protected by the technology and awareness to make sure that this constant drive for perfection never takes the ultimate sacrifice again.
Senna is a film intended for Formula One fanatics but much like the man himself it transcends the sport, opening itself up to an audience that have no interest in watching fast cars drive around in circles for hours on end. Thanks to the sheer amount of footage featuring Senna's brilliance on the track the documentary becomes more of a live action drama, allowing the viewer to see what actually happened instead of just being told the stories from people who were actually there. In my personal opinion there isn't a film more fascinating and moving, a documentary which gives people faith that cinema still has the ability to touch peoples lives through the act of storytelling. Admittedly this has turned into a second-rate critics film review, but I hope from what you have read I have been able to show you what the film meant to me, how it moved me and how it has changed my perception of the Formula One we have today in comparison with the Formula One which Senna commanded years ago.
