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In this day and age of disposable $100 million films, and films working ridiculously hard on creating not much more than a strong opening weekend, many filmmakers and film audiences forget that like all forms of art, cinema has its own language. What takes five paragraphs to write in a book can be shown in five seconds of a film, and the same works in reverse. Also in this day and age, films tend to get pigeon-holed into three categories; the first two being the most immediately recognizable: The Popcorn-Munchers and The Oscar-Bait. They're easy to recognize.
The third are what I refer to as The Dump films. Basically, these are films that will get a wider audience than a limited-release film, but they're generally released in the weakest parts of the year with no expectation of big box-office or great critical acclaim; months like September, most of October, January and February are loaded with Dump Films, so it was no surprise to me that a film like Nicolas Winding Refn's DRIVE was released in September. It was a film with actors rather than stars, and a film that was more of a throwback to the great psuedo-independent crime thrillers of the 1980's (such as MANHUNTER and THIEF, both of those films from Michael Mann who also helped to define TV in the 80's with MIAMI VICE and CRIME STORY, and TO LIVE AND DIE IN L.A. from Mann's fellow Chicagoan William Friedkin) rather than the high-octane FAST AND FURIOUS flash-over-substance film that one very disgruntled audience member thought it would be and took her outrage to unintentionally satirical heights by suing DRIVE's distributor for the cost of her ticket as well as asserting the film also had Anti-Semitic views and still intends to file a class-action suit against "false advertising". I include this anecdote mostly because I think the gall it takes to do something like this is beyond astounding, but also because I believe this woman represents most of the viewing public who saw this film.
Looking at the public's reviews of this film, it's very much a love-it-or-hate-it film. Many viewers assail the film for being too slow, too boring, and even in some cases, too graphic. Critical acclaim has been nearly universal for the film. It was one of the best reviewed films of 2011 alongside films like THE ARTIST and THE MUPPETS, but not as successful as either of those films, commercially or Oscar-y. The reason being that DRIVE is not a safe film. There isn't a moment that is antiseptic or commercial. It's not meant for mass consumption, and perhaps that explains its own devisive nature as a film. But DRIVE is not afraid to put some of the onus on the audience and tell us, quietly, to expand our ideas of what a great film is and how not only can a picture be worth a thousand words, but a glance or look can be worth a thousand emotions, and the harshness of a sound can be predicated on the silence that precedes it.
Without going too much into plot or character, it's important to give credit where credit is due. Ryan Gosling, the too-dreamy-for-words heartthrob of films like THE NOTEBOOK and CRAZY STUPID LOVE who is also the risk-taker of HALF-NELSON, THE BELIEVER, LARS AND THE REAL GIRL and THE IDES OF MARCH, is perfect as the nameless super-anti-hero of the piece. Every look, every glance, every gesture has purpose. The greatest acting talents are the performers who can speak volumes just by saying nothing at all, and this film is loaded with those performers. I call Gosling's character a super-anti-hero because there is something superhuman about this character. He can do just about anything he wants physically, and he can survive just about any assault, except for the emotional. And that's where Carey Mulligan comes in. Mulligan is by far one of the greatest young actors out there. She first really showed us that in AN EDUCATION, and continued to show it in NEVER LET ME GO, SHAME, and this film. She is picture-perfect innocence. You want to protect her, and you understand The Driver's urge to do so. Bryan Cranston, with the introduction of BREAKING BAD a few years ago, has been a revelatory performer. Who knew the dad on MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE would be one of TV's best serious actors? Not me. And his performance as the other half of the partnership with Gosling is small yet shining. Oscar Isaac as the doomed husband of Mulligan's character plays his ex-con with an immediacy and desperation and sense of inevitability. Ron Perlman as the small-time thug with delusions of grandeur is just pitch-perfect, proving once again that Perlman is a seriously underrated actor. Christina Hendricks is sultry, sexy and that's really all her role requires, which is sad, because I love her. However, the film, from a performance standout, belongs to Albert Brooks. We're used to Brooks playing the nebbish, awkward yet smarter-than-you character. We've seen it since MODERN ROMANCE, and through LOST IN AMERICA, BROADCAST NEWS and others. For Brooks to turn that image on its head and play the lethally efficient and pragmatically violent small-time crime boss Bernie Rose is beyond inspired casting, and the performance he turns in is as strong and chilling as seeing someone like Pacino or De Niro play a similar role. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor but not for an Oscar. In fact, infuriatingly, DRIVE was only nominated for one Academy Award: Best Sound Editing, which if you watch the film closely, it REALLY deserves, but it lost to... whatever; probably TRANSFORMERS or something.
The other shining star of this film is director Nicolas Winding Refn. Being somewhat unfamiliar with his work prior to this film, I tried to watch the ultra-surreal BRONSON with Tom Hardy, and couldn't get through it from a narrative standpoint but appreciated its bravura. I haven't seen his other film, VALHALLA RISING yet, but plan to watch it very soon. It's probably more his film than any of the performers: His use of every element of the language of cinema is so deftly handled, from the sound to the picture to the editing to the performers, he achieves cinematic perfection. The film works on every level it's supposed to: Crime Thriller, Fairy-Tale Romance, Emotional Drama, Anti-Heroic Action, it does it all flawlessly. Another unsung hero of this film is Cliff Martinez, who does the Tangerine Dream-esque score for the film as another nod to those classic 80's thrillers.
The simple fact of DRIVE is that this film was the purest expression of the language of cinema that came out of 2011. It never missed a moment to capitalize on that language, and it speaks it fluently and perfectly. This is, hands down, the best film of 2011.
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From the manufacturer
Drive
A Hollywood stunt performer who moonlights as a wheelman for criminals discovers that a contract has been put on him after a heist gone wrong.
Director Nicolas Winding Refn (The Pusher Trilogy, Bronson) teams with screenwriter Hossein Amini to adapt author James Sallis' novel about a lone-wolf Hollywood stunt driver who moonlights as a criminal getaway driver. When the lightning-fast wheelman (Ryan Gosling) incurs the wrath of L.A.'s most dangerous criminal (Albert Brooks), the only way out of the mess is to put the pedal to the metal. Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Christina Hendricks, and Ron Perlman co-star.
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Reviews with images
Top reviews from other countries
Bexy Blu
Received albeit quite dirty.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 29, 2024
Bexy Blu
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 29, 2024
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Jack Dmz
Excelente película, muy buena edición
Reviewed in Mexico on August 20, 2017vinsouu
Steelbook superbe
Reviewed in France on February 5, 2024
vinsouu
Reviewed in France on February 5, 2024
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