Ryan Gosling stars as a Hollywood stunt driver for movies by day and moonlights as a wheelman for criminals by night. Though a loner by nature, ?Driver? can?t help falling in love with his beautiful neighbor Irene (Carey M... more »ulligan), a young mother dragged into a dangerous underworld by the return of her ex-convict husband. After a heist goes wrong, Driver finds himself driving defense for the girl he loves, tailgated by a syndicate of deadly serious criminals (Albert Brooks and Ron Perlman). Soon he realizes the gangsters are after more than the bag of cash and is forced to shift gears and go on the offense.« less
Gritty but solid plotline with an almost always calculated strategy by Ryan Gosling, who shined in this!
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Anthony V. from PINGREE GROVE, IL Reviewed on 1/29/2014...
Bad ass film.
Firstly, huge fan of the director. He revamped the gangster genre, with his Pusher trilogy. Made the insane Herzog-esque sci-fi (Refn's words, not mine) trip out called Valhalla Rising. And Tom Hardy, pre-Bane, is incredible in his Bronson biopic. Basically being the l'enfant terrible of Euro indie cinema, he finally accepts the siren's call of Hollywood. Ryan Gosling hand picks Refn to direct Drive, and we get something similar to Polanski's migration to US, to make Chinatown. Drive is your average hardboiled revenge/heist yarn. H-Wood's been making these flicks for years, whether it was Lee Marvin with Point Blank, or Steve McQueen with Bullit. Refn brings a sharp edge, capturing the neon glow of night scenes in LA, ala Michael Mann (soundtrack and credit sequence also paying homage. Gosling quietly broods, while Carey Mulligan is vulnerable, yet not your damsel in distress. Mr. Inside Llewyn Davis plays her ex-con husband. Hellboy's pretty excellent, along with Walter White. But the highlight of the film is the casting of famed comedian Albert Brooks as the villain. A merciless and chilling gangster, that steals every scene he's in. Fast and Furious this is not.
1 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.
Kristian L. (Katomine) from PRESCOTT, AZ Reviewed on 9/18/2013...
Didn't really care for it
0 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.
S A A. (Learned2Heal) Reviewed on 2/4/2012...
Yuck! A silly, sinister, pointlessly gory and violent movie. It started out OK, promising even, then it went sour and left me and my husband wondering why we wasted any time on it at all. No real plot to speak of, no insight into why this (at first) seemingly quiet and centered main character suddenly turns gruesomely violent (i.e.: bashing an already dead opponent's face in with his foot, until that head entirely loses its third dimension). It also does not explain why the director chose to show each horribly violent sequence in extended, disgusting full vivid detail. If that's your bag, you're gonna love this film. For me... again - Yuck!