Nicolas Winding Refn, the Danish filmmaker behind Pusher and Bleeder, brings to light a rare combination of art and action in his latest film, Drive. The film is based on a novel by James Sallis and is set in downtown Los Angeles, where a quiet Ryan Gosling and his car take center–stage.
A Hollywood stunt driver by day and getaway driver by night, Driver (played by Gosling — and yes, the film fails to include the character’s name) is a solitary young man whose peaceful but all–too–quiet demeanor makes him a neutral figure to both the film producers and the thieving delinquents who hire him. The relatively one–dimensional character does, however, reveal an element of emotion when he cultivates an interest in his neighbor, Irene (Mulligan).
For the first time, audiences are given a glimpse into what motivates Driver to the extent that he is willing to risk his life. When Irene’s ex–convict husband, Standard, calls on Driver for help in a risky robbery to pay off earlier debt, he obliges, only to find himself with a trunk full of cash and mafiosos on his back. As a stuntman, Driver plays a hero on the Hollywood set, but when his emotions get the best of him, Driver becomes a hero to Irene and her son, Benicio.
Drive’s retro feel is translated through an annoyingly intoxicating collection of ‘80s music, neon lights, quintessential white jackets and Chevy Impalas, taking the audience back to cult Grindhouse genre films of the 1980s. Drive pays homage to the decade’s heist–gone–awry films with graphically violent scenes that are hard to shake but that give the film an element common to Refn’s previous works. From heads and brains exploding to skulls being smashed and faces distorted, the film exhibits a rare form of exaggerated violence.
To contrast such a stoic character as Driver with the gut–wrenching, suspense–inducing action he inspires is a unique quality that makes Refn’s film difficult to swallow but nonetheless enthralling. Drive combines beauty with gore and subdued emotion with bursts of violence. The film treads the divide between a typical crime thriller and a visually stimulating art piece. What Refn does so successfully is take a film noir cliche and turn it on its head.
4/5 Stars Directed by: Nicolas Winding Refn Starring: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan Rated R, 100 min. See If You Liked: Collateral (2004) Opens Sept. 16 at the Rave
