Show don't tell.

Rating: 8/10 (13 April 2020)

Following his critical hit 'Bronson', director Nicholas Winding Refn delivers a skilfully crafted crime drama with a lot of style and a killer soundtrack. Ryan Gosling plays Driver, a Hollywood stuntman, mechanic and getaway driver who falls for his neighbour Irene played by Carey Mulligan.
The city of L.A has never looked so good on camera thanks to the great collaboration between director Refn and cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel. The first visual reference Refn shared with Sigel was the 1964 short film 'Scorpio Rising'. Refn wanted to translate the sensual, sexual nature and the fetishized objectification of the motorcycles in the short film to the visual depiction of the cars in 'Drive'. Emulating the strong directional lighting and saturated colours from 'Scorpio Rising' Sigel noted "he (Refn) really responded to the vibrancy of the colours. We designed a lot of the sets and costumes to make use of that kind of vibrant palette". Shooting in real locations and mostly at night Sigel needed a camera that could capture the existing lights of the city and not lose detail in the dark downtown locations. Sigel decided to shoot with the Arri Alexa digital camera. Blown away with the results on test shoots, Sigel said "the dynamic range was mind boggling". Allowing him to push the sensor in darker scenes without introducing noise into the blacks. It is this clean image achieved on the Alexa that adds to the films sleek style allowing the cinematographer to capture very high contrast lighting.
Drive is often criticized for valuing style over substance, and while its style is the dominant feature of the film that has made it stand out, it works in support of the substance rather than superseding it. This is not a movie about cars but a movie about a man who happens to drive cars, Refn himself said "I have no interest in cars", the machine is an extension of Driver, it's precision, power and cool exterior are all attributes shared with the character and the stylish film making only helps to highlight this. The first chase scene of the film is sharp and efficient, edited with a fast and smooth pace. Combine that with the subjective point of view of the scene and it becomes far more valuable as a story telling tool. The shots never leave the inside of the car and the sound design is all interior as if you're in the car with Driver. Creating the feeling of being in the same space as Driver, we understand his environment, we see who he is and why his stoic nature makes him so adept at his work. In a film so centred around its protagonist it is crucial that the filmmaking help us get into his headspace.
These opening scenes with Driver are brought to life on screen with a blue themed colour palette and high contrast lighting, opposing this the shots with Irene are dominated by soft light and warm orange tones. Here we see and more importantly feel the two separate worlds that these characters come from and we understand the barrier that is between them. Early in the film even when the two characters are in a shot together the set design and framing draw lines between them. When Driver is in Irene's apartment he is almost exclusively framed with a cool blue background while she stands in front of a deep orange wall. As their relationship develops more orange tones are introduced and we see the life that driver would rather lead, a dream that he is so close to achieving. The blue and orange colour palette is nothing new to modern film making however rarely does it look this good and inform such crucial meaning to the story.
Gosling does an excellent job at portraying Driver's calm and collected demeanour with a hint of dark mystery, and an underlying violent nature. When this eventually comes to the forefront there is a tonal shift that may be somewhat jarring for audiences. Although it was built up to with significant suspense the eventual eruption is still very shocking. It is this violent nature that Driver cannot escape, and it is that which keeps him from being able to embrace a new life with Irene. The following action scenes are more aggressive and now Driver is painted as a predatory force. There is a sense that although Driver longs to escape his violent world he also accepts that this is in his nature.
The film tells us so much about Driver through his actions and the way his world is presented. With such a focus on visual storytelling and such little dialogue it is easy to see why the film could be seen as style over substance however the images and the style tell us all we need to know. While the film's story is quite simple the violent destiny of Driver, his unknown past, his desire to be the hero and protect both Irene and her child who represent a more innocent and caring world all culminate to give the film an almost storybook quality, like a dark fairy tale. It is a simple story, but one told with such attention to detail and so much control over craft that make it a truly impressive cinematic work.