Drive

Remember when video stores were insanely popular? I spent most of my youth renting VHS tapes from them. I would mostly rent cheap slashers, but every once in a while I would rent films like Escape from New York (1981), The Terminator (1984), Blade Runner (1982), and Assault on Precinct 13 (1976). These movies were dark, menacing, and stylish - movies that are in a genre of their own, 80's noir. Drive feels like one of those movies.

Prior to seeing this flick, I was expecting some high-octane blockbuster featuring sexy star of the moment, Ryan Gosling. I got the opposite. Drive is a slow-moving, noir-ish throwback to the films I mentioned above. Gosling delivers a white-hot performance that smolders on screen. You cannot take your eyes off of him. It's an hypnotic joyride you don't ever want to stop.

This film has a pretty bare bones plot. Ryan Gosling plays a nameless character that only goes by Driver in the end credits. He's a Hollywood stuntman who moonlights as a getaway driver for the LA crime world. He gets involved with his neighbor (Carey Mulligan) and becomes attached to her and her son. Things go awry when he gets involved with the mob and, of course, conflict ensues. Despite the unoriginal plotline, the acting is tour de force. Bryan Cranston, Albert Brooks, and Christina Hendricks all shine in their limited roles. Even Hellboy's Ron Perlman permeates on screen. The first fifteen minutes are probably one of the best opening sequences I've ever seen.

The real star of the movie is the direction of the Danish Nicolas Winding Refn, who takes everything he's seen in those early 80's noir films and splashes them all over this film. Some may say this film falls in the "style over substance" category, but I assure, this film is mesmerizing - like a drug you want to OD on. The film also supplies a razor sharp soundtrack and score. Synth-heavy melodic songs that provide a haunting feel to Drive.

This film feels like one of those lost 80's classics you see late on television. You have totally forgotten about them, but once you revisit them, you're instantly hooked. The LA sunset that shines through the palm trees become a familiar place, despite ever being there.

10/10