The O-town Scene

Gosling is the prettiest bad-ass every to grace the screen. But when he puts on his leather gloves and clenches his fists on the steering wheel or at his side, be ready to see him kick in some teeth. Associated Press In this image released by Film District, Ryan Gosling is shown in a scene from 'Drive.' Gosling steers intensity of 'Drive' 'Drive,' starring Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan Opened Sept. 16 It's time to get behind the wheel and pop in your favorite '80s mix tape for this highly tense film reminiscent of that de- cade's golden action genre. "Drive" is exhilarating from start to finish. At a glance, one might mistake it for being in the same mediocre league as the "Fast and the Furious" movies, but underneath the testosterone-laced action and intensity lies a fabulous story of a hero compelled to do what's right for the ones he loves. Ryan Gosling stars as the driver, a man who knows a thing or two when it comes to cars. His multi-facetted talents have him working as a stunt driver for Hollywood, a mechanic in a local garage, and at night a getaway driver for the delinquents that occupy the streets of LA under the supervi- sion of his boss/handler Shannon (Bryan Cranston). His life as a recluse begins to change when he starts to de- velop a friendship with the mother next-door, Irene (played by Carey Mulligan), and her little boy, Benicio. When the felon of a father comes back into the picture after being released from prison, the life of the driver (we don't actually get to know him 14 O-Town Scene Sept. 29, 2011 by name) gets a bit more complicated than he would have hoped. He takes it onto himself to protect the family next door by tracking down and killing those who are behind a double- crossed heist. Everything that Gosling does in this movie is full of acute in- tentionality. He is a man of very few words, so when he does speak the other characters as well as the audience listens. There is something I have missed with high-action mov- ies lately, which have lacked heros who will do whatever is necessary to protect the ones they love. And Gosling is the prettiest bad-ass every to grace the screen. But when he puts on his leather gloves and clenches his fists on the steering wheel or at his side, be ready to see him kick in some teeth. The overall feel of the movie is what made this project suc- cessful. It had a total '80s vibe throughout _ from the John Hughes pink-letter credits to the fabulous soundtrack featur- ing modern-retro music by Desire, College and Cliff Marti- nez. Add the incredible camera work, and you can see that director Nicholas Winding Refn made it his prerogative to recapture what made the action genre so much fun to watch in that decade. Even when I wanted to hate this movie for elements like the glistening silver Members Only jacket with a scorpion detail on the back, I couldn't help but love it. It toggles the line with- out getting to the point of nausea. The movie was well aware of what it was doing, there was even a point where one of the characters mentions that back in the '80s he was a producer for action films. Talk about a self-referential statement. This movie delivers. The build of the movie layers over and over upon itself until its breaking point with both emotional aspects as well as bloody violence. And boy, let me advise you, this movie has a ton of bloody violence. I just hope the overall triumph of this movie doesn't inspire a franchise. I wouldn't be surprised to see "Drive" on the list of nominations for being well executed in its direction and hav- ing high quality performances from Mulligan, Cranston and, obviously, Gosling. This seems to be the year of Ryan Gosling, who shows that no matter what the genre (rom-com "Crazy, Stupid, Love" and the upcoming George Clooney drama "Ides of March"), his deliverance is not only noteworthy, but also astounding. � Peter Eklund Grade | A-

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