Drive

During the opening minutes of Drive, I could tell I was watching something special. Movies like this just don't get made much anymore, and it's sad. Instead, year after year we get loud CGI laden insults to our intelligence. But Drive takes its time, builds its story and characters. It's almost a relief to watch. And, contrary to most action movies, there's no shaky cam either. If you can't tell, I loved Drive. It is easily my favorite film of the year so far.
The story centers around a nameless character played by Ryan Gossling. By day, he's a stunt driver for the movies (the story is set in LA). By night, he's a getaway driver for any criminals that are willing to pay for it. He lives a quiet meticulous life, until he starts hanging out with his neighbors. Meanwhile, his manager/boss (played by Bryan Cranston) gets involved with some really shady characters and things unravel from there.
Another thing this movie has going for it is the cast. It's damn perfect. Gossling plays his character with the quiet ferocity of a cobra, while the rest of the cast (including Ron Pearlman, Albert Brooks, and Christina Hendricks) chatter away around him. Gossling only says a handful of words in the entire thing, but there's so much going on in his head and it's mostly communicated non verbally. It's pretty fantastic not to have the entire story told to us through dialogue, which is common these days.
While I was watching, I couldn't help but wonder what this film would be like in the hands of someone like Michael Bay. I'm guessing it would be more explosiony with lots of spinning low angle shots. And then there's the violence.
Jesus, this movie is brutal. I won't give anything away, but I was shocked a couple of times. During the movie, I thought of a handful of other films that this is like. It's reminiscent of movies like Heat, True Romance, Goodfellas, Taxi Driver, and Clint Eastwood's Man With No Name movies. I don't feel like Drive is ripping them off, but that it deserves to be in their ranks. It's that damn good.
Drive is the kind of movie that reminds me of why I love movies. At the same time, it gives me hope that the movie industry isn't quite dead yet and can still amaze and inspire us. I really hope Drive wins Oscars, but I don't know if it's that kind of movie. Drive succeeds at being both a leftover B movie of the 70s and an independent art house movie at the same time. It's like a puzzle, and when you put the pieces together and take a step back, it's something really great. If you love movies like I do, this is something you shouldn't miss.