Simply wonderful

Rating: 9/10 (17 January 2014)

Nicolas Winding Refn's previous film, VALHALLA RISING, an existential Viking epic with Mads Mikkelsen, was a breath of fresh air for this tired reviewer. I immediately marked out Refn as somebody to watch, and while his prison biopic BRONSON was a little disappointing, I waited with interest to see what his next movie would be. Well, DRIVE was it, and the good news is that it's his best one yet.
The story is simplistic, as is always the case with Refn: the hero is a getaway driver by night and a stunt driver by day. Through no fault of his own he gets caught up in a scam involving some deeply unpleasant gangsters, and it all kicks off from there. Refn's gameplan is to contrast moments of serene beauty and tranquility with shots of unflinching and bruising violence and it works a treat; this is one of the best and most memorable movies I've seen in a good while.
Everything about this movie is great: the moving soundtrack, the exquisite camera-work, the subtle yet profound performances. Ryan Gosling is a new to me star, but his acting works a treat; he's as iconic as Eastwood back in the day. I don't even like Carey Mulligan but even I have to admit she's on good film, too, as are the various old timers (Ron Perlman, Albert Brooks, and Bryan Cranston).
The first half of DRIVE leads you to wondering where it's all going to go, but in the second half it all slots together nicely and becomes more predictable. That's not to say the predictability is a negative though; Refn knows exactly how to handle his thematic elements, leading to confrontations that pay off beautifully. This is a superb film throughout and one I can't wait to see again.