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Nicolas Winding Refn's Drive (Gosling, Mulligan, Hendricks)

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Was looking at some Batman art by a guy named Clay Rodery and came across this wicked GIF he created:

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I just saw this night and was completely blown away. Would have been my pick for last year had I seen it then. Just gorgeous, wonderfully paced, and economically written. I also love the whole Shane vs. Sociopath dynamic at work with the main character. And, as odd as it might seem given the subject matter and difference in tone at parts, it is in many ways, the closest a film has come to evoking Lost in Translation for me since LiT came out.
 
I'M GIVIN YOU A NIGHTCALL

TO TELL YOU

HOW I FEEL


I WANT TO DRIVE YOU THROUGH THE NIGHT, DOWN THE HILLS

I'M GONNA TELL YOU SOMETHIN YOU DON'T WANT TO HEAR

I'M GONNA SHOW YOU WHERE IT'S DARK, BUT HAVE NO FEAR
 
Just saw it for the first time myself. I haven't seen a movie like this in a long time. Besides the awkward scene after the river I loved every second of it. Great cast. Great music. Great style. I'll probably read the books now.

It felt like a 70's/80's movie with all the bells and whistles of modern filming.
 
I was gettin' excited about this whole thing. My name on a car! I mean, look how beautiful! I wanted to see my name on this thing. I think we would have made a go at this business.

Don't worry. Don't worry. That's it. It's done. There's no pain, it's over. It's over.
 
Someone please say something nice about this movie.

I was just at the IMDB board and after reading some of that filth, I feel like punching something.
 
Sean! said:
Someone please say something nice about this movie.

I was just at the IMDB board and after reading some of that filth, I feel like punching something.
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Come here, bro. We're all friends here.

I still bump the soundtrack every now and then. Nightcall and Real Hero getting the most play from the soundtrack.

Since this thread got bumped, I think it's time I watched it again.
 
Sean! said:
I'm just sick of all the "It's too slow" or "Gosling comes off as retarded" comments.
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I guess I'll have to trace the scorpion logo now. :p

I have the digital copy stored in my iPad and computer, as well as the actual blu-ray itself in this beautiful packaging:

original
 
Future Shop in Canada had it exclusively when it first came out. It's just a cardboard slipcase with the regular cover on the actual Blu-ray case. Though, we still got the better cover vs. the US version (yuck).
 
traveler said:
I just saw this night and was completely blown away. Would have been my pick for last year had I seen it then. Just gorgeous, wonderfully paced, and economically written. I also love the whole Shane vs. Sociopath dynamic at work with the main character. And, as odd as it might seem given the subject matter and difference in tone at parts, it is in many ways, the closest a film has come to evoking Lost in Translation for me since LiT came out.
Click to expand...
That's one way to put it. The script could be written on a pamphlet. The driving sequences looked like slowed down dry runs. That "real hero" tune may be the worst song I've heard in a long time. Gosling is a charisma vacuum in this movie. And "that scene" is one of the most awkward I've ever seen.

Having said that, it does look gorgeous, the soundtrack is amazing, and Mulligan is fantastic.

I like the movie, more so after a second watch, but it has some pretty big problems. I'm yet to be convinced by Winding Refn (only other one I've seen is Bronson, hmm) , his movies need to feel more exciting to me. It's like he's directing on sedatives.
 
NinjaBoiX said:
I'm yet to be convinced by Winding Refn (only other one I've seen is Bronson, hmm) , his movies need to feel more exciting to me. It's like he's directing on sedatives.
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Valhalla Rising won't please you, it looks gorgeous too, has violent scenes, but if I tell you that the main character is mute and that the film is slow and eery...

But if you want more energy, you have to check Pusher 1,2 and 3
 
okdakor said:
Valhalla Rising won't please you, it looks gorgeous too, has violent scenes, but if I tell you that the main character is mute and that the film is slow and eery...

But if you want more energy, you have to check Pusher 1,2 and 3
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Yeah, I hear that the Pusher trilogy is kind of mental!
 
Still think they should've gone with an older lead. At the end of the day, Gosling is pretty much the one that got it made so I can't be too upset.

And you better get used to the Gosling "retarded" comments, because his acting style hasn't changed and doesn't look to be changing any time soon. His style works better with older actors who have a more established presence when filmed. His babyface looks end making me just think "what the hell's up with this guy?".
 
I'm totally assuming there's been discussion on this line in movie, just throwing it out there. Saw this with a girl today, and picked up on this (my 4th watch of the movie).

The scene where Driver and Benice are watching cartoons, Driver can't tell who the bad guy is, where Benice can spot it immediately. Benice asks him something along the lines of "can't you tell?"

It occurred to me that maybe the line is in reference to Drivers thought process (or..umm...mental state) where he can't tell whats right or wrong, only knowing he loves the girl and the kid.

Or I'm overthinking it. I love this movie so much.
 
Saw this movie on BluRay two days ago. One of the best movies I watched in 2012. I totally like the style, story and soundtrack.
That beginning of the movie with Kavinsky's song playing is just amazing. Gave me a real oldschool feel.
 
gdt said:
I'm totally assuming there's been discussion on this line in movie, just throwing it out there. Saw this with a girl today, and picked up on this (my 4th watch of the movie).

The scene where Driver and Benice are watching cartoons, Driver can't tell who the bad guy is, where Benice can spot it immediately. Benice asks him something along the lines of "can't you tell?"

It occurred to me that maybe the line is in reference to Drivers thought process (or..umm...mental state) where he can't tell whats right or wrong, only knowing he loves the girl and the kid.

Or I'm overthinking it. I love this movie so much.
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I get the impression he had a form of Aspergers or something, where he just can't relate, but then he seems to be able to with the girl / kid...

Still loved the whole thing, I get the jokes about it and they make me laugh (the long silences are hilarious at times) but I still loved it.
 
SteveWD40 said:
I get the impression he had a form of Aspergers or something, where he just can't relate, but then he seems to be able to with the girl / kid...

Still loved the whole thing, I get the jokes about it and they make me laugh (the long silences are hilarious at times) but I still loved it.
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I think it might just be a commentary on Driver being in too deep, maybe. Also I hate it when people say there's something wrong with him just because he doesn't talk a lot, I mean is it so hard to fathom that there are some people who don't want to constantly vomit out words?
 
watched it again. first time i saw it, it was background noise, but i enjoyed it a lot (i did actually tune in for a lot of it though).

picked up a lot more this time around-
shannon always looking for a quick buck, the driver not blinking (he tells benicio, 'you blinked' early in the movie, and then stares down the guy who comes up to him at the bar table, and of course there's the long stare at the end of the film [just like that it was set up by previous scenes]), and i actually saw shannon's death scene this time (man).

it's weird, because i don't really see a whole lot of people talk about brooks when it comes to this movie, but i thought he was great. he's just a guy who wants to live his life comfortably and not worry about any major changes, and his dumbass partner forces him to act. and there's nothing to suggest he enjoys doing it- he's upset, or maybe annoyed, with nino that he has to kill cook, shannon, and the driver. it's something i find pretty believable.

i like all the minor characters, for that matter. standard was obviously upset that his wife had found someone else, but he seemed like a good guy who just wanted to move on with his wife. nino was basically a teenager looking for respect. shannon was a salesman, and dishonest, but not bad (which was a welcome change from some of his most recent characters). the only one that didn't do anything either way was hendricks. blanche was just kind there.

there are a lot of parts to pick and choose from, but i think my favorite is actually the very end. i was so expecting that shot of him in the car to indicate the driver was dead, and for it to cut or fade to black. it's been done so many times before, and having that expectation toyed with was a nice surprise for a bittersweet ending that didn't feel forced or hollywood.

i wanna see it again sometime, and i don't really rewatch movies.
 
AniHawk said:
i like all the minor characters, for that matter. standard was obviously upset that his wife had found someone else, but he seemed like a good guy who just wanted to move on with his wife. nino was basically a teenager looking for respect. shannon was a salesman, and dishonest, but not bad (which was a welcome change from some of his most recent characters). the only one that didn't do anything either way was hendricks. blanche was just kind there.
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Agree 100%--I was surprised by how much I liked all the characters, considering how little writing there was.
 
"He goes on to more an new adventures—No, it was never meant to be, but after Toronto last night, I sat through the movie with Ryan, I kept on thinking, The character is born, he's out there, he transforms himself completely into what he's meant to be, he was always meant to be this… He goes on to more and new adventure. What's interesting in the book is that he sees his own death, but I didn’t use any of that because I wanted him to be mysterious, I wanted him to be an enigma. If there is to be a Drive 2, it would be with 2 drivers—maybe there's a driver from his past , (heroes) always need their Lex Luthor… Moriarity."
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http://www.nbcbayarea.com/blogs/popcornbiz/Nic-Refn-Drive-Ryan-Gosling-129883338.html

So... that'd be interesting. Another driver. Maybe he'll be a chatty Cathy.
 
After watching it for the first time yesterday and enjoying the fuck out of it, I would be down for a potential Driver 2.
 
Watched it again tonight.

I may have missed something, but it seems to me that Rosling's character should have recognized the name Nino and thus he should have told Shannon not to tell Bernie about the situation because it would lead to Nino.

I was also bugged that Shannon didn't try to defend himself. Bernie had his back turned to him. There was a perfect moment there where Shannon could have grabbed a tool from a shelf and struck Bernie over the head with it. But he just let Bernie live and shook his hand like a fool.

The Driver also turned his back to Bernie and suffered the consequences.

I mean, get with the program. This guy is a killer. He bled your friend to death and you turn your back to him? The more I think about it, this movie would have been infinitely better if Gosling's character walked into that Chinese restaurant, nodded at Bernie's spiel, and pulled a knife out and stuck him in the neck just like that. Then, smiling his little smile, he could have walked out of there with the money and gone anywhere he wanted to with Irene and Benicio.

It would have been just as good a film if it had ended that way, if not better. Plus, now I'm left wondering if the Driver is going to be okay or not. Certainly, you can survive a stab wound in your gut but you need emergency surgery lest you become septic and you will spend the rest of your life in discomfort.
 
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