Thread: [Movies] Drive.

  1. #1
    Immortal Clockwork Pinkie's Avatar
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    [Movies] Drive.

    Hmm, where to begin, well, I guess here's the trailer for some people that do not know it.
    It's Red Band, not that that it matters.
    .

    But, I saw it, and here's my review of it. It was a very good and very intense movie, and at times, heartbreaking. In total I'd say there's really about 20 pages of an actual script. There are some very long silences, awkward long shots of characters faces, things like that, I'd say the director was trying to be a modern Stanley Kubrick with letting the characters faces and emotions tell the story without needing words, it really does work, but sometimes these shots would last just, a bit too long. I'm not complaining at all, it's just awkward to be staring at Ryan Gosling's face for a very long 2 minutes, then cut to him driving off into the darkness, roll credits. But the whole second half when Ryan Gosling snaps (You'll know when this is), he just turns badass (no things don't pick up, there's still the silences). I think this is the only movie that has a strip club scene, with boobies everywhere, and you don't even notice them, or care, because you are stuck looking at Ryan Gosling being a badass with a hammer. Great movie, very freaking intense, but oddly enough, I wouldn't recommend to see it in theater's because of my second part I must argue...

    Part 2. The reason why many people are disappointed, and dislike this movie. The trailers are very misleading. They display and showcase it as an action flick, when it is far from it. There's a total of 10-20 minutes of action sequences, in those 10-20 minutes, there's only two cars going at it, no explosions, real car crashes, no Hollywood. Some people think it doesn't live up to it's standards. I will understand that many people will not like it, even if they understand it's not an action flick, there are very long breaks in the script a whole bunch of times, that's one flaw, I don't mind long silences, but when there's more silence than actual dialoug, it does sort of become an issue at this day and age.

    TL;DR. It's arguably a great movie that must be seen, even if the plot has been done to death, it pulls it off really well. Just DO NOT go in exception an action flick like Transformers or even Mission Impossible. It's a drama revenge mafia love flick, and Ryan Gosling does give it his performance of the year, I just couldn't look away. I recommend it, but it might be something that'll be more enjoyable for most people at home or the dollar movie, due to the misleading trailer.

  2. #2
    First off, I must agree with your point about marketing. The campaign to hype this movie up to the general movie going audiences must have been envisioned by someone who hadn't seen the movie.

    Secondly, this is going to end up as one of the best movies of the year. Drive is kind of a Frankenstein monster of a movie that cannot be easily sandwiched into any one genre. This is going to turn some people off unfortunately, as for some reason most people like knowing exactly what they are going to get when they see a movie, and they don't deal well with something that doesn't play exactly to their expectations. In many way's this is the antithesis of something like Transformers. Its a romantic, violent, visually stunning picture that never feels exploitative and never panders. Driver is as much a monster as any villain in the movie (expect award nominations for both Gosling and Brooks) and I'm amazed to see a movie that's so honest about how scary its own hero is. Add in all that European aggressive direction and a killer sound track and you end up with a movie that something like Taxi Driver by way of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

  3. #3
    I feel like this is the film of a talented film student who created a spent a lot more time creating a beautiful film than creating a meaningful one. It's lush and violent (although some of the cinematographic, while all competent, is a bit cliched despite its obvious allusions), but there's just nothing behind that veneer. It transcends other simple action films in its direction and cinematography, but it fails to instill any sort of meaning or even really provoke thought. Some people like "empty but beautiful" films, but that's not really something I'm so fond of myself.

    Frankly I'd almost rather see a The Fast & The Furious film so I don't risk falling asleep while being forced to stare into Gosling's eyes.

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  5. #5
    Brewmaster redruMPanda's Avatar
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    I want to see it because of all the hype behind it just hope it's worth it.

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Aphorism View Post
    I feel like this is the film of a talented film student who created a spent a lot more time creating a beautiful film than creating a meaningful one. It's lush and violent (although some of the cinematographic, while all competent, is a bit cliched despite its obvious allusions), but there's just nothing behind that veneer. It transcends other simple action films in its direction and cinematography, but it fails to instill any sort of meaning or even really provoke thought. Some people like "empty but beautiful" films, but that's not really something I'm so fond of myself.

    Frankly I'd almost rather see a The Fast & The Furious film so I don't risk falling asleep while being forced to stare into Gosling's eyes.
    I'd recommend watching it again. The set pieces are absolutely masterful. The director creates a tangible sense of anxiousness, a feeling that anything could go wrong but never does, but somehow, he can still draw the audience in. The reference to 80s action flicks was further mirrored by "Driver", the "man with no name" as Clint Eastwood played it years ago in his own spaghetti western trilogy. Note the incredible use of lighting which reflects the main character's mood, or the state of delusion throughout where he constantly resides between his own fantasy and what is really happening - the random violence has a point. And somehow, Gosling manages to pull his role to near perfection; communicating more through nuances instead of blunt and obvious dictation. It is an absolute leviathan of a character study, twisted and daunting, revelling in the faintly present sadism.

    To take this film at face value only would be, I think, a grave mistake.

    To suggest this does not provoke thought suggest to me you walked in expecting Transporter or Fast/Furious or something. Honestly, if that were the case, I wouldn't blame you; the advertising team fucked up pretty bad when it came to trying to convey what the film might be like.
    Last edited by jreg; 2011-09-24 at 06:34 AM.

  7. #7
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    I loved the film, its one of my favourites so far this year, Ryan Gosling is brilliant as well I expect an Oscar nomination to be coming his way.

    I loved the funky 80's style sound track and the elevator scene is just brilliant, I highly recommend this movie go watch it!

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by jreg View Post
    I'd recommend watching it again. The set pieces are absolutely masterful. The director creates a tangible sense of anxiousness, a feeling that anything could go wrong but never does, but somehow, he can still draw the audience in. The reference to 80s action flicks was further mirrored by "Driver", the "man with no name" as Clint Eastwood played it years ago in his own spaghetti western trilogy. Note the incredible use of lighting which reflects the main character's mood, or the state of delusion throughout where he constantly resides between his own fantasy and what is really happening - the random violence has a point. And somehow, Gosling manages to pull his role to near perfection; communicating more through nuances instead of blunt and obvious dictation. It is an absolute leviathan of a character study, twisted and daunting, revelling in the faintly present sadism.

    To take this film at face value only would be, I think, a grave mistake

    To suggest this does not provoke thought suggest to me you walked in expecting Transporter or Fast/Furious or something. Honestly, if that were the case, I wouldn't blame you; the advertising team fucked up pretty bad when it came to trying to convey what the film might be like.
    Clint Eastwood films tend to make some grand conjecture about the human experience, or some insight into how we live our lives. Watching Drive was just something entirely different; I kept thinking "and now what" every time a scene went by, every time the Driver committed some gratuitous act of violence. There wasn't anything human or emotional about the film. It was well shot, beautiful even, but distinctly missing something. You can't just wrap a film in allusions and call it deep.

    edit: The New Yorker raises a good point. The film's violence, while attention-grabbing, often distracts from the humanity and emotion of a scene.
    Last edited by Meleti; 2011-09-29 at 03:29 AM.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Aphorism View Post
    Clint Eastwood films tend to make some grand conjecture about the human experience, or some insight into how we live our lives. Watching Drive was just something entirely different; I kept thinking "and now what" every time a scene went by, every time the Driver committed some gratuitous act of violence. There wasn't anything human or emotional about the film. It was well shot, beautiful even, but distinctly missing something. You can't just wrap a film in allusions and call it deep.

    edit: The New Yorker raises a good point. The film's violence, while attention-grabbing, often distracts from the humanity and emotion of a scene.
    That's the problem though; I believe it to be thought provoking, but not as a vehicle for thematic backdrops or greater meanings necessarily. I don't think its allure is rooted in deep conjecture, but more of a piece of deconstruction. I viewed this film as two parts to a whole: a beautifully shot action film that emphasizes its strengths by using silence as a point of juxtaposition rather than the actual noise of stylized action or especially the overuse of it (see any Michael Bay film). Secondly, I viewed this as a character study. Though it doesn't boast the encompassing themes of a great Eastwood film, or even the unorthodox construction of a Tarantino piece, it contains the beautiful set pieces of the former, and the unabated violence of the latter. As a result, I felt like the lack of script emphasized the moments of the film, rather than ruin or blur the impact. I do agree that sometimes, the violence occasionally detracts rather than provides.

    I guess in terms of music, this is like Loveless, Madvillainy, You're Living All Over Me, or something like that - the strength of those albums is not necessarily in its content so much as it is in the way everything perfectly melds together into an immersive whole.
    Last edited by jreg; 2011-09-29 at 06:14 AM.

  10. #10
    About it not provoking any thought...maybe it's just you? On another movie forum I frequent, in 24 hours the "Drive" review has sparked 82 responses debating the meanings of all sorts of things about the movie. It may not make YOU think, but saying it "fails to provoke thought" certainly doesn't mesh with what anyone else I know who's seen it has said...

  11. #11
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    Had been following Refn since he had a (horrible) homemade pitch out for his first movie - Pusher. I always felt that his movies was great but had a immature tune in some way - maybe he used violence in a slight cheesy way, not sure.
    Drive is defenately the most mature of his movies though. I wouldnt give it 10/10 because of some odd scenes ( Gosling driving backwards in a carchase just because he can, a unnecessary fork in a eye and stuff like that). But 8.5/10.
    Cant wait to se what he can do with a mega budget (Logans Run remake)

  12. #12
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    Definitely one of the more memorable and interesting movies for me in a while. I just bumped into it a couple of days ago while looking for a film to watch, checked it out on IMDB and decided to give it a shot. I really liked the style from the beginning and the music was very fitting giving off a cool 80s vibe.

    I liked the character development of the Driver, his will to find something that matters, the decisions he had to make and the realisations that came.

  13. #13
    Just got done watching it on Blu-Ray...and I have to say I'm impressed. I was sad when I missed it in theaters, and I had bear the acclaims and appraisals for a couple months which killed me. This movie didn't disappoint. I understood this was going to be a movie more along the lines of Reservoir Dogs than Bourne Identity etc.

    People say it has more style than substance, but do movies really need a lot of dialogue to be good? Look at the Artist which will probably win best picture (oh Oscars, why are you so predictable?) Actions speak louder than words is the perfect line for this movie. The whole movie had the best tension build ups I have ever seen, I was literally about to explode during the second heist and the whole '5 minutes'.

  14. #14
    Herald of the Titans Eorayn's Avatar
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    I rated it as one of my favorite films of the year with a 9/10. I adore the performance of Ryan Gosling, but Albert Brooks and Carrey Mulligan deserve some recognition too.
    I was so pissed when it was only nominated for Best Sound Editing at this year’s Academy Awards. If I was to vote I would vote Ryan Gosling for Best Actor, Nicolas Winding Refn for Best Director, and the film itself for Best Sound Editing, Best Film Editing and Best Original Screenplay. I wouldn’t say it should have won those, but at least be nominated.
    Great film, great acting, the movie lover won’t be disappointed. In fact, if one loves the beauty of movies, one would love it.

  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by Flimsy View Post
    I loved the film, its one of my favourites so far this year, Ryan Gosling is brilliant as well I expect an Oscar nomination to be coming his way.

    I loved the funky 80's style sound track and the elevator scene is just brilliant, I highly recommend this movie go watch it!

    the opening tune- Pukka & Worthy a listen

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