Drive | Review
‘Drive’ is exactly what the main character does in the film. He simply drives. In actuality, it isn’t really all that simple. The Driver (Ryan Gosling) fixes broken cars by day and drives getaway cars for criminals by night. On the sidelines he’s a professional stunt driver for Hollywood movies, which may help explain why he’s so good at his night job.
The Driver, an emotionally secluded individual, is a man of a few words. We know little of his past or of his character at all, and by the end of the film this doesn’t change. But ‘Drive’ is captivating because of the character’s mysterious, but thrilling personality.
When we first meet The Driver, we witness a perfect demonstration of his night job in action. Driving for two burglars, The Driver encounters police cars and helicopters, but manages to outrun and outsmart both. This opening scene is particularly great because it’s so well-executed. There’s a strong level of suspense, thrills, and action all mixed into this one driving sequence. Even better is the POV shot of The Driver driving the getaway car and hiding from the police cars.
The Driver’s carefully-planned lifestyle takes a dramatic and unpredictable turn when he develops a close relationship with his beautiful neighbor Irene (Carey Mulligan). Raising her young son Benicio (Kaden Leos) alone since her husband’s in prison, Irene receives some household help from The Driver. He fixes her car, helps with the groceries, and babysits Benicio. Their short-lasted relationship comes to a halt once Irene’s husband, Standard (Oscar Isaac, from ‘Sucker Punch‘), is released from prison. A changed and wholesome family man, Standard wants to leave his criminal past behind him. However, there is one last heist job he must do before he can leave it all behind in order to protect his family, and Standard requests The Driver’s fail-proof getaway driving skills.
Coming along for the heist is Blanche (Christina Hendricks, from ‘Mad Men’), who works for the crime boss forcing Standard into this last crime. The job seems easy enough – steal money from a random pawn shop in Los Angeles. It’s soon realized, however, that this job isn’t exactly as it seems. ‘Drive’ provides a classic case of a heist gone wrong, and it soon culminates into a revenge thriller for The Driver.
Once the heist-gone-wrong aspect of ‘Drive’ is set in motion, a great deal of fantastic sequences are also set. A chase scene involving a mysterious car that was present at the scene of the heist ensues with The Driver, and the way this sequence is shot is great. The action is clearly presented on screen instead of fast-cut, confusing action shots, and the choreography of the chase is excellent. ‘Drive’ also becomes an violently gruesome bloodbath of a film once The Driver is pushed to his limits and must fight for his survival. The bloody action scenes are very shocking at times, and they’re even more gut-wrenching by having the bloody scenes just shown for a split-second; this way it leaves it to your imagination to fill in the gaps.
‘Drive’ is directed by Nicolas Winding Refn (‘Bronson’). The interesting thing is that Ryan Gosling himself chose Refn to direct this film, and what a fantastic choice that was. ‘Drive’ is an artistically brilliant film and a throwback to various classics. Its neo-noir art house format features stylized film sequences, as well as a heavy mix of a 1950’s small-talk hero, 1980’s-like score, and present-day Los Angeles setting. Refn’s work in ‘Drive’ is truly commendable because he’s done such a great job at balancing contrasting genres and for utilizing retro, European influenced film sequences and music.
Going against the silent protagonist in ‘Drive’, the film also features other interesting characters with personalities more open and comprehensible than The Driver’s. Shannon (Bryan Cranston) is the owner of the car garage The Driver works at. He’s a father-figure to The Driver, and is probably the only person he’s close to. Loosely associated with Shannon are Nino (Ron Perlman) and Bernie Rose (Albert Brooks), two crime lords who take interest in The Driver. Nino, oddly enough, is Jewish, but owns an Italian pizzeria. He also wants to be more like an Italian mobster. Bernie is the more likable of the two, and he invests in The Driver to win races in a NASCAR scheme. Though both Nino and Bernie are odd and appear harmless at times, they’re absolutely ruthless at heart.
‘Drive’ not only excels at the specific things already mentioned, it also excels in boasting an all-star cast. Ryan Gosling (‘Crazy, Stupid, Love‘ & ‘Blue Valentine’) is quickly winning me over as one of my favorite male actors, and he’s totally convinced me to take him seriously. Carey Mulligan (‘An Education’) is talented, but unfortunately she’s under-utilized in the film. Bryan Cranston is already a notably great actor for his work in ‘Breaking Bad’. Ron Perlman (‘Hellboy’) is perfect as the odd, yet terrifying crime boss, Nino. Most important, though, is Albert Brooks as Bernie. Having only seen one other work from Brooks (as the voice of Marlon from ‘Finding Nemo‘), it’s an interesting experience to see such a change in pace for the actor. Brooks does a fantastic job at portraying Bernia as a likable ally to The Driver, but also a ruthless villain to him as well. Albert Brooks really is a scene-stealer in ‘Drive’, which means a great deal considering the talent that’s involved in the film.
‘Drive’ is one of the best films of the year. It’s a welcomed film that doesn’t exactly follow the generic cliches of other action-heavy, heist films. The characters here are all diverse and interesting. The actions sequences are comprehensible. The plot is engaging. And the score is amazing.
