Customer Reviews

Drive (+ UltraViolet Digital Copy) [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(152)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(27)
2 star:		(35)
1 star:		(86)

 

 

In a year in which Ryan Gosling could do no wrong from romantic comedy (Crazy, Stupid, Love) to political drama (The Ides of March) to this art house actioner--"Drive" stands as the apex of his career-changing film streak. I have, for many years, declared Gosling perhaps the best actor of his generation. Ever since he burst onto the film scene in the controversial "The Believer," Gosling has eschewed being a mainstream "star." Heck, after "The Notebook," another actor might have taken a very different career path. But Gosling, despite a couple of disappointing forays into big budget Hollywood, has remained true to his indie roots. Until now, that is. This year, he seamlessly blended indie cool with mainstream appeal. Of course, in "Drive" he found the perfect filmmaker and artistic collaborator in Danish auteur Nicolas Winding Refn. The two began a very public bromance and have already embarked on their next film project (2012's Only God Forgives). Winding Refn is an ultra-cool writer/director whose resume is populated by some of my favorite international hits, and he picked up the Cannes Best Director prize for this. If you are unfamiliar with his work, I strongly suggest you invest in "The Pusher" trilogy--a series of films exploring the underbelly of the Copenhagen drug scene.

Well that's a lot of build-up to "Drive." But here's the thing, I'm not going to elaborate very specifically on this movie. Anyone who reveals too much is doing the movie a complete disservice. It is a film that is best left to unfold at its own pace with all surprises intact. The movie makes the most of its seedy Los Angeles setting. Gosling plays an unnamed stuntman who gets a sideline job working for a crime syndicate boss, played by an uncharacteristic Albert Brooks. All I will say is that things take an unexpected turn, and Gosling morphs from a virtually silent protagonist into a stone cold nightmare. It's an exciting transformation and one that will linger with you. This is modern noir at its finest, but with a decidedly art-house vibe. It combines an edgy urban seventies sensibility with the man-with-no-name western allure. I think many expected "Drive" to be a car movie or a non-stop action picture, but it is essentially a slow-burn character driven piece about how far one man can be pushed. But make no mistake, it continues to ramp up to extreme proportions before the blood soaked finale.

The filmmaking is top-notch throughout. There is an exquisite use of light, shadows, neon shadings, and arresting street level views of Los Angeles which make the visual appearance of the film quite spectacular. The odd techno-pop soundtrack is unorthodox, to be sure, but somehow fits perfectly. The editing and camera work is assured and edgy at the same time. And the effects are brutal and unforgettable. Add to that a great cast, and "Drive" becomes a can't miss proposition. Gosling shows a different side here, but the performance everyone will talk about is served by Brooks. Brooks paints one of the most memorable villains on screen this year, completely against type, and will probably be looking at serious awards consideration. Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Ron Perlman and Christina Hendricks help round out the cast. "Drive," ultimately, may not be for everyone and that's OK. Winding Refn has put together a near perfect film for adult audiences. If you check your expectations at the door, don't read spoilers, and settle in (oh and it helps if you aren't particularly squeamish)--this is a ride well worth taking. KGHarris, 12/11.

Before watching this film you have to understand that this is an arthouse flick masquerading as a Gone in 60 Seconds type of film & if you're expecting Gone in 60 seconds or a Michael Bay type of action film you'll be soooo disappointed...On the other hand if you're looking for a smart superbly crafted methodically paced/shot arthouse film you'll adore this! I love both stupid action films & foreign arthouse fair so this film is a match made in heaven & one of the best films ive ever seen even though ive seen dozens of films like this(every cliché in the genre book is presented here but thats beside the point)...This film is in love with itself...Cant give it enough stars...For the folks who hate "Drive" i understand & i forgive you...lol

Drive isn't for everyone but if you 'get it' and don't expect the same old boy meets girl action flick then this 'is' for you.
It's beautifully shot and the musical score is hauntingly effective.
Ryan Gosling is amazingly subdued and he is able to convey an emotion with a facial expression better than if he were to have 1000 lines of dialogue.It's extremely violent and has some better special effect scenes than some big budget slasher films I have seen.
The entire cast is great and everyone does their part to add to the atmosphere, Carey Mulligan and Bryan Cranston being on par second to Gosling.
It has that indie feel to it but you can tell the budget was large.
The use of lighting was genius incorporating just the right amount of Neon as was most everything else about the film.
Goslings character has no name he's referred to as 'Driver' and it's apropos because he remains almost an enigma with a heart of gold,just don't cross him.His moods being distinguished mostly by the clever shots of him while he's driving seeing as that seems to be where he feels most at home.

What a stylish and beautiful, yet uncompromising and unrelenting drama. It is a violent crime tale, but it is also a love story of rare restraint and deeply moving selflessness. Ryan Gosling deserves a best actor nomination, Albert Brooks a best supporting actor nod. The film itself is entirely deserving of best picture recognition. And the director, I hope, has not exhausted his creative energies with this remarkable effort, because he appears entirely unswayed by the shallow and formulaic conventions of today's cinema. And the music ... well, Oscars have been handed out to scores not half as good as this.

Other reviews here have highlighted the movie's great qualities. The movie gets 5 stars from me.

It loses one star when it comes to retail and the customer experience: UltraViolet is a poorly implemented system that has caused Warner Bros. to hand out iTunes codes to dissatisfied UltraViolet customers.

[...]

I won't buy the Blu-Ray copy of this movie due to the poor digital version option.

HOLLYWOOD: For now, your most appealing movie package is the Blu-Ray + DVD + DIGITAL copy one. I pay the Blu-Ray premium for these!

Otherwise, the savvy public is tempted to burn backup copies of their purchased DVD copies so they can watch them as they please.

'nuff said.

I want to start off this review by saying I absolutely LOVED this film. I also know that it has it's fair share of people who hated it, but I'm not trying to convert any of those people, as enjoying films are all about forming your own opinions. A few things you should do before seeing this movie, however, are:

-Do not go into this film expecting a "Fast and Furious" type car movie. Don't expect lots of action either.
-Read up on the fable of the Scorpion and the Frog (I went in already knowing the story and it's meaning and it gave the film a deeper meaning for me).
-Read the book by James Sallis. The movie does a good job of taking the feel of the book, but also changing the characters around a little bit and delivering a great movie-watching experience.

That said, the Blu-Ray has some great special features that were interesting to watch. I give the film four an a half star rating, and the BR itself five stars.

The only thing I really liked about the movie was Ryan Gosling and Carrie Mulligan. Ryan can do no wrong. Yet again, his acting is clean, crisp, and on-point.

However, the story-line is kind of flat and there was too much gore and blood for my liking.

Overall, good acting but not a great story-line.

Nicolas Winding Refn's "Drive" is a minimalist love letter to films like Michael Mann's "Thief" and William Friedkin's "To Live and Die in L.A." from the use of pulsating sythesizer music to score the film to riveting action sequences alternating with long, drawn out scenes of the Driver (Ryan Gosling) doing exactly what he's best at--driving getaway cars, Hollywood stunt vehicles. Keep in mind that "Drive" although it echoes things like the titles from a film like "Thief", "To Live and Die in L.A." (a William Friedkin film) and "Manhunter" in terms of its soundtrack, titles, asthetics, etc., is an indie film with a distinctive European art house flavor.

SPOILERS:
The Driver has a specific code for right and wrong that he lives by. Moving out of his isolated world the Driver falls for Irene (Carey Mulligan)a married woman who's ex-con husband Standard (Oscar Issac)ends up spelling trouble when the Driver in an attempt to help Irene acts as a driver for one last job to liberate Irene and her family.

END OF SPOILERS

"Drive" is minimalist in every sense of the word from the sparse dialog to the straight forward emotional connection that the Driver develops with those around him from Irene to his employer and friend Shannon (Bryan Cranston). Featuring a terrific supporting cast (Albert Brooks in an unexpected turn as a bad guy, Ron Perlman, Christina Hendricks in what amounts to a cameo), "Drive" won't be for everyone but those who like the unusual mixture of genre action films mixed with art films that Mann helped pioneer back in the 1980's will enjoy this retro thriller.

The DVD looks positively stunning with a nice, sharp transfer. Colors vary a bit from the cool surfaces of the night photography to the warmer skin tones during the day sequences of the film. Detail is extremely good throughout with nice skin textures and a fair amount of grain that compliments the gritty feeling of the film.

Audio positively pops and pulsates particularly during the action sequences or those where the Driver is cruising the city.

Special features include "I Drive" which focuses on the inspiration for the film, "Under the Hood" focusing on the cars, "Driver and Irene" on the pivotal relationship in the film and a nice long interview with director Refn where he discusses his fetish for cars (although he and screenwriter Hossini Amini don't drive)to the genesis of the film (high on medication for a nasty flu bug after a horrible meeting with Gosling Refn was inspired to come up with the basic plot for "Drive" when Gosling drove him back to his hotel and that basic outline was incorporated into the script that Amini adapted from James Sallis book).

It's a bit disappointing that we don't get an audio commentary and the film comes with the dreaded (by many) Ultraviolet copy that you have to stream live on your portable device but, those two minor drawbacks aside, "Drive" is a fascinating combination of 80's retro filmmaking.

If the description doesn't sound like it will appeal to you, I'd suggest renting before buying.

Drive completely caught me by surprise. Based upon the trailer and plot summaries such as the one above, I went into the movie thinking it was going to be just another typical action film along the lines of Fast and the Furious and The Transporter. I couldn't have been more wrong. Ryan Gosling plays a character only known as "Driver". By day he is a stuntman driver in movies and works on cars at a shop owned by his only/older friend named Shannon. At night he offers his services as a getaway driver to clients who need speedy exits after unsavory activities (such as robbing places). The opening sequence is set up by Driver's simple rules:

"There's a hundred streets in this city. You don't need to know the route. You give me a time and a place, I give you a five minute window. Anything happens in that five minutes and I'm yours. No matter what. Anything happens a minute either side of that and you're on your own. Do you understand?"

The chase scene that follows is unlike anything I've ever experienced before in an action car film. As the driver starts to navigate his clients through the dark streets with the police following behind, I was sitting there waiting for Ryan Gosling to start spewing cheesy one liners that Vin Diesel or Jason Statham and other action stars have become famous for. I was waiting for the suspenseful music to start pumping. I was waiting for---SOMETHING familiar to happen on the screen. Instead, the scene was done in almost complete silence, except for the sound of the police through his scanner and his own car radio. This technique built suspense way more than the normal high speed chases we see in movies. I found myself holding my breath at every turn. Talk about intense!

While the opening sequence was an amazing chase scene, the rest of the movie plays out more like a drama with the main focal point on characterization. Driver is a lonely, introverted man that seems to only feel alive when he is doing dare devil stunts on movie sets or taking the risk of getting caught every time he accepts a "getaway" side job at night. The feelings he develops for Irene and her son are foreign to him--driver's background is never really revealed in the movie, but you get the impression that he had an unhappy childhood or rough upbringing that has molded him into the man we see onscreen.

Although many people think the elevator scene is the turning point in the film (and in many ways it is) for me it's the motel scene with Christina Hendricks' character, Blanche. Up until then we know him as a lonely, under-the-radar type character. But this new development shows that he is an angry man, that under that cool exterior is suppressed rage just waiting to be unleashed.

There were a few things going on in this film that had me a bit confused. However, I eventually made peace with these issues once I connected the dots. Driver had a distinct jacket with a scorpion emblem on the back. He rarely takes it off, even when it's covered in blood and he walks onto one of the movie sets in front of people. I at first thought that was a bit unrealistic but after watching this movie a 2nd time, I realize that Driver is not your normal man. I'm not saying he is supernatural or anything like that, but he definitely has some hero-esque qualities about him. Like Superman with his cape, Driver has his jacket.

The music and font chosen for the credits were two other oddities that had me scratching my head at first. There was a lot of pop songs in the movie done in the style of the 80's or early 90's-- definitely not something you would expect out of an action film. The font at the beginning and end credits is done in cursive and is a hot pink color. Again, let me remind you, this is not your typical action movie.

My only major gripe with this film is the very long periods of silence. I know this sounds weird and it's hard to describe what I mean but there are many scenes where Driver and Irene just stare at each other-- or Irene would ask him a question and it would take him forever to answer back. This goes on a lot during the film and may be annoying for some viewers who have short attention spans. I won't lie, it even annoyed me the first time around because I put the movie on real late at night and had trouble with keeping my eyes open during those scenes. BUT, I do GET it. I know this was purposely done by the director. There are moments of awkward silence and just when you think nothing is going on and let your guard down, all hell breaks loose. Someone is shot, or stabbed-- you get the point. So in a way, you are rewarded for your patience. This works for me but others may find this annoying.

If you are looking for an action/drama that doesn't quite follow the normal Hollywood formula, then give Drive a chance. If you like art house films, then this is DEFINITELY a film you need to see!

Mia at The Muses Circle (Like my review? Come check out more on my blog! Do a google search for The Muses Circle)

I don't review movies, but I feel compelled after watching this one.

I pre-ordered this and it was in my mailbox on the day it was released in stores. Props to Amazon and UPS. UltraViolet is a joke and should not be listed in the title as a misleading "bonus item". However, that's no reason to give a bad review, especially if you enjoyed the movie.

The first thing that was striking was the picture quality. Absolutely perfect. The opening scenes were night shots, where you'd usually expect to see ample amounts of noise. Not only was there zero noise present during these night shots, but there was zero noise throughout the entire film. Incredibly sharp, perfect color, perfect contrast, simply stunning. From start to finish I was looking for flaws, but couldn't find any.

The sound mix was equally amazing. I just found out that this title was nominated for an Oscar for Sound Editing. The cars sounded fantastic and my sub was shaking the walls. The dialogue was perfectly mixed, it was never lost in the background noise. I really loved the soundtrack on this one. I had initially downloaded a bootleg copy, only to find the soundtrack basically consisted of the same soundtrack from Social Network. After watching it the way it was meant to be seen, I think the proper soundtrack made the movie more immersing.

The movie itself was simplicity at its finest. I think it's unfortunate that some people see the acting as lacking emotion. Personally, I found Mr. Gosling's performance oozing with emotion. There were some scenes where he was expressionless, yet managed to portray a very sad and lonely person. Contrary to that, there were also scenes where he remained expressionless and at the same time was full of anger and vengeance. That could also definitely be attributed to the fantastic direction, cinematography, and soundtrack.

Well, I'm sort of at a loss and I remember why I don't review movies. There's really a lot to recall and I don't know how the pros do it, but I definitely don't have what it takes! Hopefully my petty review will give someone some insight about this perfect Blu-ray.

This one is a must own!