Drive

Drive

A Film Review By: David Ramirez

****/****

Driver is a Los Angeles wheelman for hire, stunt driving for movie productions by day and steering getaway vehicles for armed heists by night. Though a loner by nature, Driver can't help falling in love with his beautiful neighbor Irene, a vulnerable young mother dragged into a dangerous underworld by the return of her ex-convict husband Standard. After a heist intended to pay off Standard's protection money spins unpredictably out of control, Driver finds himself driving defense for the girl he loves, tailgated by a syndicate of deadly serious criminals. But when he realizes that the gangsters are after more than the bag of cash in his trunk - that they're coming straight for Irene and her son - Driver is forced to shift gears and go on offense. - Yahoo


Ryan Gosling stars as the character simply known as "Driver". Gosling does a great job as the soft spoken and very mellow man of mystery. The character is a man of few words, this could be troublesome for some actors but not Gosling, who himself is soft spoken by nature. At times when the movie calls for violence, he never acts as one would expect in an action movie but then again this is no ordinary action movie and he is not your typical action hero. Gosling delivers a great performance in a role where he is using very few words to express varied feelings that go from love to anger, and from tenderness to revenge.


Carey Mulligan co-stars, as Irene the neighbor whose home situation is not perfect and is rather emotionally fragile. She doesn't get much screen time, however during the time we do see her on screen she wears her emotions on her sleeve and we truly feel for her and hope that she can get out of her situation. One of the most refreshing things about her character is she doesn't change; she doesn't out of nowhere find some inner strength or toughness that was never there.


One of the fantastic things about drive, is that there are many scenes with no dialogue between the characters. The dialogue is replaced with an 80's inspired soundtrack and powerful emotions delivered through looks and actions of the characters. There is something very powerful about using this method and very refreshing. 


The film's stunning cinematography truly captures the audience in the proceedings. they are not as many of them as you would think but the adrenaline-fueled car chases are furiously shot and nothing short of thrilling. Director Refn's camera also beautifully captures the Los Angeles skyline and the sprawling lights of the city. 


The film is an electric mixture of beautiful and lingering cinematography, a pulsating soundtrack, lean dialogue and short bursts of graphic, bloody violence. It's tense and involving- almost impossible not to get immersed in it. 'Drive" is truly one of the stand out films of this year and proves that less can work best in a movie.