You might go to it with solemn images in mind of the old-school maverick driver classics — Grand Prix (1966) and Le Mans (1971) — which is a vibe director Joseph Kosinski does prize highly and a role that fits Brad Pitt quite snugly.

Maverick' helmer's feature, which counts Lewis Hamilton as a producer and features Javier Bardem and Kerry Condon, is about the late-career return of a once promising Formula 1 driver.

Joseph Kosinski builds a high-powered movie out of Bruckheimer clichés, but that wouldn't matter if the races were as dramatic as they are flashy.