The character of The Driver is cool incarnate and a true walking nightmare. There is a reason he achieves some clarity and calmness once he's behind the wheel. Those four tires separate him from the Earth, allowing him to fly like a graceful angel. Cross him or attack the ride and you'll have to contend with a devil, wielding a hammer or an engined-fuel bullet respectively. Choose wisely because this bloodthirsty avenger with a pretty face will leave carnage in his wake.
DRIVE engulfs two of America's most vivid fascinations, automobiles and criminal violence, and with a heavy hand from Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn becomes a beautiful masterpiece of terror. It takes your expectations, whether low or high, and gleefully plays and juggles around with them like a mischievous jester. The film hands you an exciting car chase at the start, moves to a slow crawl with quieter moments before exploding at random intervals with undiluted mayhem. It is one of absolute greatest films this year.
Los Angeles, a city ruled by the commerce and entertainment of sports and filmmaking, once again becomes a cesspool of crime of facades. A nameless and often emotionless inhuman being, played expertly by Ryan Gosling, has decided to dip into all of these aspects only if it includes an automobile. He does the car stunts in films, works at a car shop with his mentor/father figure, and is about to get into stock car racing. However, his true obsession is moonlighting as a wheelman, willing to grant various underlings an easy getaway only if they make it back before five minutes are up.
Like all crime stories, a dame comes along but this time with a child. The Driver enters into a blossoming relationship with his neighbor, a struggling mother (Carey Mulligan) with a husband in the joint. This sense of true joy and bliss for him is then grounded and further stomped upon when the husband is released and back in the grasps of his criminal handlers. A chance to rescue him leads to a botched job, massive double-crosses, and a bag full of money. The guardian angel for the scum of the earth now becomes its grim reaper.
Daring is the keyword for this film. All of the players in front and behind the camera bring their truly best work to make a gory art film. Ryan Gosling deserves the best attention with his unbelievably engrossing performance. I often joked that Gosling is our generation's Marlon Brando with his critically acclaimed roles and the immense lust of his female fans. With this film, the joke has come true. He plays up his character's unpredictable behavior to a hilt with his conflicted facials but the audience can interpret what's to come with his silent hand gestures. All of his very talented co-stars can handle the challenge of Gosling, most notably Albert Brooks and Ron Perlman as menacing crime bosses. Even Christina Hendricks, one of the most stunning and talented workers on television today, steals some spotlight in her unglamorous but interesting brief role as a femme fatale.
The artsy cinematography is never pretentious, even during the sun-coated playful scenes. It is able to easily avoid simply being a giant spotfest of glorious framed shots and mise en scene thanks to muted lighting and clever editing. The ugliness of fluorescent lights is everywhere in L.A., amplifying both the immense despair and the brief moments of love. Several scenes are long takes and go on for awhile, almost to the point of parody. However, others are married with the exceptional sound design and music. From the low hums of an engine and a watch to the Tangerine Dream inspired film score and songs, the audio pushes the film to breathtaking proportions.
DRIVE completely moves so far forward and ahead over the rest of this year's releases. It handles both being an art and entertainment driven film and then pummels them harder and further into the viewer's eyes and ears. Truly exciting, truly brilliant.
FINAL REVIEW: 5 / 5
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