Style over Substance

Rating: 5/10 (4 October 2011)

I feel I have to write something about this film that so many are going crazy about. Having looked forward to this film, I have to say I was not a little disappointed. I don't want to spoil it for people so I'll try an describe my feelings not the plot. It is well shot and it has a feel of an eighty's pop video, which reminded me of a Madonna video, perhaps it was the electro pop soundtrack. Much has be said about Ryan Goslings performance, and does play it with aloofness and has a cool Estwoodesque manner. Its called Drive, but it is not Bullet, so If that's what you expect forget it. The film is mainly very long still shots of Ryan Gosling, doing not very much and saying even less. As I said it is well shot and the director borrows heavily from Michael Mann in Heat, and Ridley Scott in Blade Runner. There is violence, some unseen, some graphic. But not totally believable, it is not just that Gosling just doesn't quite manage to pull it off. He try s to portray some kind of dangerous psychopath and, for me, it didn't work. The lack of much dialogue was also very irritating. On the whole I feel this film is way overrated