Drive

To compare this film to anything else would be a mistake. This film is unlike any other that I can remember. Ryan Gosling has been hanging around in my Top 5 Actors category for a little while, but with yet another brilliant performance on his part, I have to say he is my favorite working actor today. I'd say a lot to do with my like of this guy is his choice in films. He does mainstream media films, but he does more than dabble in Indie film as well. Drive is not mainstream at all. After watching it, I was surprised it was even showing at my local cinema. As I saw it, Drive is an Art film. Indie films are made with little to no money backing the production or the script or the actors for that fact. Art films are passion projects that have everything they want, but they are delivered in a way that is so different from what we are brainwashed into accepting from Hollywood these days. This film has the actors, the script, and a director that I have never heard of. He was the steam roller behind the film and getting it made. His direction is beautiful. That is not a word you will hear me say very much when talking Directors, but he gave this film a life that would not have been with another director and actor. Gosling does weird so well, I often wonder how strange he is. When he is not at the gym, or breaking up street fights, what is he doing? As long as he continues to perform in a way that very few actors are able to, then I don't care. The film itself feels like a 1980's throwback. The soundtrack, heavy with synthesizers, and the hot pink cursive script opening credits makes it feel like late night Cinemax Softcore. 

The story follows three different subplots on top of the main story of a Hollywood Stunt driver who moonlights as a wheel man for hire. A wheel man is a fancy way to say getaway driver for robberies and what not. The Driver's spiel is a brilliant line that stays with you.  We get to hear the line a couple times throughout, but the opening one just out of the credits is the best. If you are expecting Gone in 60 seconds, Don't. The way the opening scene during the initial job is shot is superb. My heart was pumping like mad, but the chase was not like most Hollywood chases. It was very methodical. The first 15 minutes has little to no dialogue which is strange in and of itself, but there are several minutes of film with complete silence between the characters which is also weird. It is weird to be able to hear your fellow theater goers crunching their popcorn, or unwrapping their candy. It is dead silence, but brilliant. With the first scene, we see what kind of man Driver is. He is smart, clever, and never flustered. What starts out as a film about a Driver quickly turns into a man fighting back. Driver is thrust into a job he would not normally take, but with the safety of some of his very good friends, Irene (Mulligan) and her young son Benecio, he does the job. Doesn't take a genius to figure out it is a set up, but why? That is what Driver tends to find out. The first half of the film is a joyous romp about boy meets girl, but the second half is really dark. By dark, I absolutely mean DARK. There is a sense that Driver has a past he is trying to escape, but when confronted with certain situations, that person returns. Driver is quiet and reserved, but I think he is always studying everyone in the room without anyone noticing him. His driving gloves are BA, but the white scorpion jacket is a little off. With outstanding performances by Carrie Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Ron Perlman, and Albert Brooks this film is a knockout. With that said, if you can't handle blood and extreme violence, then Drive may not be for you. I did not expect it, but I welcomed it. I do feel that with this review, several of you may go see Drive. Maybe not in the theater, but eventually you will watch it because of what I wrote. Let me just be honest. I accept lots of films that others don't get or care about. If you watch this film and hate it, then I apologize, but as for me and my opinion, I loved it. I also feel this is an art film and therefore, my first art film theater experience. FYI: If you expect 90% of the film to take place in a car during high pursuit, you will be disappointed. I think at one more car scene could have been added, but at the same time, I don't know where it would fit and how it would work.

NBM rates Drive - Phenomenal