An uncommon wheel man, a driver with brains and a plan and a Good Samaritan; an enigma

Rating: 8/10 (28 November 2011)

Ryan Gosling plays the driver with no name, an enigma, in many ways, from start to end. After reading a few pretty good reviews I was curious to see if in fact the director Nicolas Winding Refn had indeed managed to keep Gosling's character from revealing his name; amazingly the main character played by Gosling is not 'interpelled' by his name nor does he introduce himself. The movie is so captivating that this goes almost unnoticed by many viewers, sadly myself included. Gosling's character is revealed in ever small doses and it never leads to where you expect. You will not get to know him but in a few surprising moments at a time, each more dramatic than the one before. I've seen many movies with Gosling and he was right for this part; if you have seen "Half Nelson" and "All Good Things", to mention his less viewed and lesser grossing productions, you would likely agree he was the man for this part. The writing and directing, however are no less the elements that make the movie very different than what I'm sure viewer expected. It is very well conceived and flows nicely while it grips you seemingly. The story is more than has been drafted to promote it; it is well worth reading a few reviews to get all the intricacies at play here. Despite being heavy in sub-plots, it does not weigh the movie down as I would have thought, a tribute to Refn, Amini and Sallis.
Contrary to what the title would have you believe, as well as the trailers, the movie is not about car chases. There are only two car pursuits. The first one starts at 2:09 minutes into the movie and ends absolutely brilliantly at 8:52, making it a mere 6:43 minutes chase which feels much longer; it feels longer because you are put in the driver's seat, but not quite as the racer wheel man, rather as the mastermind escape artist, well prepared, aware of all the goings on by the cops and making moves like a chess player in a blitz tournament. The second car chase is a more standard pursuit, but remember that Gosling is an escape artist behind the wheel and this time he's running from double-crossing criminals. No match for Gosling's character. The movie is much more about the main character's contrasting Good Samaritan nature and the ruthless means he must resort to in order to do what he must. The high ratings and praise from reviewers is no surprise. You should like it; I certainly did.
p.s. If you are in need of a fix for car chases, high octane nature, I recommend Peter Fonda 1974's "Dirty Mary Crazy Larry", Charlie Sheen in 1987's "No Man's Land", Nicolas Cage in 2000's "Gone in Sixty Seconds", Paul Walker's 2001's "The Fast and The Furious" & the other "Fast and Furious" sequels, Jason Statham in 2002's "The Transporter" & the two other sequels; also both the 1969 and 2003's "The Italian Job", Steve McQueen 1968's "Bullit", Gene Hackman 1971's "The French Connection", William Petersen 1985's "To Live and Die in L.A." and Daniel Craig 2008's "Quantum of Solace" opening scene. The last four are my favorites; the two most intense chases are by Petersen and Hackman, the former as the driver pursued and the latter as the most determined pursuer.