Not all it's hyped up to be...

Rating: 5/10 (1 February 2012)

The movie was desperately trying to be artistic, but, through my eyes, was definitely not. While watching the movie, I noticed many familiar film-tactics, such as displaying blood as beautiful art and slow-motion-drama. These were wonderful executed by the likes of Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino. Nicholas Winding Refn, the director of Drive, attempted to display both of their brilliant talent into his one movie. What happened instead was a muddled and dragging mix of the two, which resulted with long openings, dragged slow-motion scenes, and overly- gory violence. Seriously, a girl's head exploded. Neither masterfully beautiful, like Scorsese, or ragingly shocking, like Tarantino. Just plain, cringe-worthy. Also, the slow-motion scenes. They're a bit played-out, wouldn't you say? Something to ponder over.
When Gosling isn't out making deals with criminals or doing the stunts of actors who "do their own stunts", his character spends time with his neighbor and her child. She's not a single mother either (but she will be), as her husband is in jail for a short amount of time. (When I say short amount of time, I am referring to the long introduction.) The Driver develops feelings for his pretty neighbor, which would push him to get involved with the aforementioned crime deal. Even though Gosling shows no apparent feelings for her, through facial expression, it is evident how much he loves her. No sarcasm intended, he truly loves her. At least that's what I gathered from it. As for her son, this was a touching plot line, always appreciated in most movies. However, in the dark, sinister undertones of Drive, it proves to be an obstacle for both the Driver and the movie itself. Really, it just drags on, almost painfully slow. Again, these are simply objective critiques. If not, then I mean for them to be.
Onto the best part of the movie: Albert Brooks. In most cases, I don't generally like Albert Brooks; in movies such as Muse and The In-Laws, he played a bumbling, whiny fool and I didn't care for him at all. In Drive, however, he provides an exceptional turn into a malicious, sly criminal who executes his responsibilities with composure and swiftness. Considering the first description of his typical character, I'd say his performance here was absolutely grand. Based on my evaluation, I'm sure you can guess I was more than disappointed to find that he was not nominated for an Academy Award. (Among other shocks.)
*This was posted originally on my blog at www.movieriot.blogspot.com