Drive

Ryan Gosling channels his inner De Niro as "Kid" or just "Driver" in this stylish, subtle homage to Taxi Driver by Danish New Yorker Nicolas Winding Refn. Refn is hot on the Indy scene right now, and his best picture to date is 2008's Bronson, starring a budding Tom Hardy as the enigmatic and notorious prisoner.

Drive seems like it is cut right out of the 80's, with the neon pink credits, and the hyperactive techno soundtrack. There is something a bit too cool though, and Gosling knows it. He's become an indy film stalwart, stepping outside his normal comfort zone earlier this year with Crazy, Stupid, Love and the upcoming Oscar bait Ides of March. This must have been a pet project for him, and it is a much more turbulent film than you would expect.

We are introduced to the Kid (Cormac McCarthy envy?) as he is working. He has a hard and fast set of rules as a getaway driver; 5 minutes, walk away when done, and he doesn't carry a gun. The opening sequence is a suspenseful cat and mouse sequence masterfully played without music. Just the sound of the police scanner, and the stoic look of the driver's eyes planning the escape route in his mind.

Fast forward to the next day at his day job, where he is a stunt driver for Hollywood movies, and a mechanic at a greasy shop in a shady part of Los Angeles. This begins the unraveling of the fiber of this character. He is loyal to his boss, the well-cast Bryan Cranston, but seems to be slumming with regard to his potential, his skills, and his suave, silent, confident demeanor. It just doesn't feel right from the get-go.

He befriends his neighbor, and dances with sexual tension, but there is never really any chance of them being together, because she is married and her husband is just about to get out of prison. He falls in love with her and her son, and has to step in when an opportunity arises to help them out.

Things spiral out of control, and a shocking, yet not altogether unexpected bloodbath ensues, from which Driver (or Kid) must fight to the death to escape the clutches of an organized crime duo played wonderfully by Albert Brooks and Ron Perlman (truly underrated, with his fat sausage fingers, and his enormous face).

Gosling picked an odd project here. My first problem is that the main character is unbelievable. The second is that once the carnage ensues, it is entirely too gratuitous. Much like the shock value of Taxi Driver's over the top bloodfest, Drive has a couple of sequences that go down a dark path that would be better ignored.

The driving scenes are incredible and just brief enough to hold your attention. They aren't drawn out or glamorized to be anything special, but they showcase this young man's true talent, and to be honest, Gosling just looks cool with the leather driving gloves and the toothpick in his mouth.

The relationship between Gosling and Mulligan is genuine good acting, but the characters aren't in a position where it can survive. It's doomed from the start and so it's really just wasted emotion on screen.

I liked the vibe of this movie, but the psychotic, bloody turn just turned me off from the fun action suspense film I was hoping to enjoy. I continue to give Gosling credit for choosing projects that are way off the beaten path (Half Nelson, Lars and the Real Girl, Blue Valentine), and I would like to see him get a little more credit for it (Blue Valentine Oscar Nomination Snub). He does a great job, as do Cranston, Perlman, and Brooks. Mulligan is just a pretty face.

I wouldn't recommend seeing or not seeing it, but be prepared for a one-eighty about halfway through, and a completely different film during the second half. Refn just took it a bit too far. 6/10.