While the F1 circus was still cleaning up at the track in Shanghai, settling into the aftermath of the Chinese Grand Prix on Sunday, the folks behind “F1: The Movie” were polishing their freshly minted Oscar statuettes. Accepting the Academy Award for Best Sound on behalf of the film were the folks who engineered and edited that sound, Gareth John, Al Nelson, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Gary A. Rizzo, and Juan Peralta. Sir Lewis Hamilton, a producer of the film—the highest grossing sports movie in history—was name checked on stage in Hollywood for his role in making the movie possible. It was a magical moment for a movie that made the theatrical experience an incredible one.
“F1: The Movie” won Best Sound in a hotly contested battle against Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” Spain’s desert rave movie “Sirat,” and big award winners “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another.” Ultimately, the Oscar couldn’t have gone to anyone else, as F1 has all of the sounds like vroom vroom, nyoooom, and screeeeech. You have to award a movie when it has such varied sounds. The award recognizes excellence in sound mixing, recording, sound editing, and sound design, and in recent years has gone to such great films as “Ford v. Ferrari,” “Top Gun: Maverick,” and “Mad Max: Fury Road.”
The Joseph Kosinski-directed film was also nominated in three additional categories, which it did not win. “F1’s” nomination for Best Visual Effects was probably always going to go unanswered, as it was up against the third entry in the “Avatar” franchise. Likewise, Best Film Editing wasn’t to be for “F1’s” editor Stephen Mirrione, as “One Battle” had that category on lock. And certainly let’s not all kid ourselves that the movie’s Best Picture nomination would ever bear fruit.
Other car films receiving awards
The biggest prize of the night, the 98th Academy Award for Best Picture, went to Paul Thomas Anderson’s epic “One Battle After Another” which has pretty much been the locked-in frontrunner since it debuted last summer. It was also my pick for Best Use Of A Car In A Film at the Jalopscars last week. If you like car chases, this movie has maybe the best and most nerve-inducing car chase in a film in forty years? The car casting is phenomenal. From Bob’s stolen Nissan Sentra SE-R with a big wing on the back to Sensei Sergio’s MN12 Ford Thunderbird with power shoulder seatbelt, it’s just inch perfect.
Best Actor in a Leading Role went to Michael B. Jordan for his portrayal of twins Smoke and Stack in Ryan Coogler’s incredible “Sinners”. Being a 1930s period piece, there are some great cars in this film, too. As something of a love letter to Black American history, the film dressed up an old 1915 Dodge Brothers’ automobile to play a C.R. Patterson & Sons vehicle for Mr. Jordan’s split characters to drive. Patterson, of Greenfield, Ohio, was the first and only Black-owned and operated automobile company. None are believed to exist today, so a facsimile was created for the film.
“F1” won just the one Oscar, but that’s all it needed to be called an Oscar-winning film. Everyone’s favorite 2025 Brad Pitt vehicle joined “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” “Hamnet,” “Sentimental Value,” and “Weapons” as one-award winners. Meanwhile “KPop Demon Hunters” took home two awards, “Frankenstein” won three, “Sinners” won a quartet, and “One Battle After Another” brought home six trophies for Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography (with Autumn Durald Arkapaw being the first woman to win this award in history), Best Casting, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Directing, and Best Picture.
