The Ayrton Senna Movie – Will you watch it?
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOzq927y15o]
In all of racing history, the Honda flag never waved higher or prouder than it did during the years of 1988 to 1991. During this period, Honda supplied customer engines powered McLaren to the top courtesy of a certain Ayrton Senna who picked up all three of his world championships while driving Honda powered cars.
Senna, the man, the mystique and the legend, is the subject of a new documentary that just screened at the Sundance Film Festival. Its producers are seeking a summer release in the United States. The movie has so far screened to rave reviews and it is our hope that the movie gets a wide theater release. We want to get word out so people demand a theatrical release for this film.
Several of our members have watched Senna race and have vivid recollections of his racing career as well as his tragic demise in 1994. For some members, all the excitement and fun of F1 racing died at that moment and they have not followed F1 since.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNmqn3heGgE]
As the above video attests, Senna was a very competitive driver who had super-human skills in the wet. His professionalism and commitment ensured that he could even make a dog of a car perform miracles when it was least expected. Just as he was cut-throat and competitive when it came to racing, he also had a compassionate side. He gave freely to charities in Brazil, a fact that was only revealed upon his passing. It was his complex mix of characteristics that have kept him in the public mind and in our conscience even after 16 years.
Senna shared a great relationship with Honda. The Acura NSX’s suspension and handling was fine-tuned based on his feedback and he shared friendly relations with Shigeru Uehara, the father of the S2000 and the NSX. We can’t help but think that this relation may somehow have also influenced the design and development of the S2000. The firm suspension and tight handling of the S2000 could very well have been the outcome of Senna’s inputs on the NSX.
A movie about Senna that is based on over 15,000 hours of real footage, may just be what we need. It will, we hope, teach us all to be better drivers, and more importantly, teach us to be better human beings. At the news team, we are waiting with bated breath for the movie to arrive. How about you? Would you watch a movie about Ayrton Senna? What does he mean to you?
LINKS:
Ayrton Senna thread on S2000 talk
Ayrton Senna Movie thread on Auto Racing Discussion
Tip of the hat to energetic
Videos courtesy of BBC and Universal Studios.
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