Last weekend was a weekend of cocooning, book reading and endless movie watching. The movie that made the strongest impression on me was Senna, the 2010 documentary on the life of Ayrton Senna, possibly the world's best Formula One driver (or at least the most fascinating one). When I was a child I remember that every weekend I spent with my father our Sunday ritual would without fail include watching Formula One and I admit that though I initially complained I always ended up getting really excited and drawn into every race. I would in no way not call myself a Formula One fan and all I knew about Senna before watching the documentary was that he was from Brazil and died tragically on the tracks. I nonetheless really loved this documentary which is unique in exclusively using archived footage (a large part of which was made public for the first time), that included a mix of interviews, footage from races and from behind the scenes, and family videos. 'Senna' won the 2011 World Cinema Documentary Audience Award at the Sundance Festival and in my opinion duly deserved this award as it is a perfect documentary and avoids all the cliches of biographical documentaries by neither trying to deconstruct the image and myth around Senna nor trying to nostalgically and sentimentally glorify him. This documentary is a portrait of a man, a humble and caring man of faith, that made a mark in history, a man that incited intense love and controversy and cast a spell over the masses. This is less a movie on Formula One and more a movie about the ingredients that make certain men leave a mark on our public consciousness.
So a little bit about the man himself, he came from Brazil and was proud of it, always seeking a Brazilian flag to wave whenever he victoriously crossed the finish line. Through his glorious career (he won three World Championships, held the record for most pole positions from 1989-2006 and holds the record for most victories at the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix, six) he gave his people some hope and something to be proud of and after his death it was discovered that he donated millions to children's charities in Brazil. Six months after his death his sister established the Instituto Ayrton Senna a Brazilian NGO focused on providing education to children and teenagers from low-income backgrounds. He started his career with kart racing and it is moving to hear him say that his favorite race was from that period, as it was pure driving, pure racing without the money and politics involved in F1. As a driver he shinned under the riskiest and hardest conditions, during rainfall, when the tracks were slippery he danced his best dance with the car.
His infamous rivalry with "The Professor", French F1 driver Alain Prost, was the subject of intense controversy but also raised the prestige and interest in F1. It is shocking to note that both the 1989 World Championship won by Prost and the 1990 World Championship won by Senna were decided by collisions between them at those years' Japanese Grands Prix.
It is also shocking to note that though Senna tried to change certain regulations and practices in F1 racing to increase the safety of drivers he was the last driver to ever die at the wheel of a Formula One car, he died tragically at the age of 34 in a crash while leading the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.
Beneath the helmet Senna was a fascinating, beautiful and contradictory man, humble, shy and deeply regilious yet a daring and risk-taking global celebrity whose boyish innocence and charm could break any heart.
Buckle up and enjoy the ride!
"And so you touch this limit, something happens and you suddenly can go a little bit further. With your mind power, your determination, your instinct, and the experience as well, you can fly very high."
"These things bring you to reality as to how fragile you are; at the same moment you are doing something that nobody else is able to do. The same moment that you are seen as the best, the fastest and somebody that cannot be touched, you are enormously fragile."
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