Some good stuff, but not a keeper

Rating: 4/10 (26 February 2012)

Seems to be a major dichotomy of viewers here. People either love this movie or they hate it. The reason, I think, is because this is not a formula movie. If you are looking for a Jason Statham-style shoot-em-up, this isn't it, although the driving footage, little of it that there is, rivals some of the best I've seen and looks real. If you are looking for a Vin Diesel-style high energy movie, you won't find that here. This movie is sloooow most of the time. I mean fall asleep slow.
So...what's to like? Well, if you are a devout follower of Ryan Gosling, he does a pretty good job of fitting into the mold Refn gave him. Probably a bit of a stretch for him...although I have to admit I'm not a follower so I don't know for sure. Albert Brooks plays a really excellent, understated but brutal bad guy. His caring nature is accentuated by his partner Ron Perlman's pure thug disposition. Carey Mulligan was the epitome of a girl any man, good or bad, would love to rescue. Great casting there...great casting in general.
The anti-hero concept is a little over-rated, I think. It is certainly not new. I consider "The Professional" (Now called "Leon: The Professional") from 1994, where Jean Reno protects a young Natalie Portman from the crooked cop Gary Oldman to be one of the best of all time. Many, many actors have done them, some better than others. Try "Man on Fire" with Denzel Washington going to great lengths to save somebody he was hired to protect.
Lastly, there are three elements of this movie that, good or bad, set it apart from the pack. First there is the incredible lack of dialog. I often felt like maybe Ryan Goslig was supposed to be mentally deficient in some way. You did not get the impression his inability to carry on the most basic of conversations was any kind of Rambo-like intensity. It was truly awkward, as though the writers wanted to tell a story, but simply weren't good enough or didn't want to be bothered with even the slightest witty dialog. The second element is the "Why this and not that?" concept. Not why the movie, but why did a million things that weren't really needed occur, while others that should have did not? We are never given any background to give us empathy for the characters. Why was the ex-con husband portrayed as truly caring for his wife. Through that dialog we learned a little about the girl, too. But there is no explanation of how Gosling's character, never even named throughout the movie, became the nut-case that he is. All we get is a little history with his boss that reinforces that he likes cars. No other background....at all. Perhaps this is the intent. It did not enthrall me. And the third element was what appeared to me to be an unraveling of the plot toward the end. If Gosling's character was proactive about eliminating threats throughout the movie, why the departure at the end? Because of a promise made earlier? Unlikely. Why would somebody go to such lengths to protect the girl and not make an effort to be with the girl? It just didn't fit.
So, what you get in this movie are a few stand-out scenes. You will remember them by the good acting, the excellent action, the brutal blood and gore and one weird scene in a strip club. Unfortunately, those scenes are separated by achingly long stretches where absolutely nothing happens...right up to the very end. Fade to black....