He'll tell you it was the worst movie he's ever seen, even suggesting that it was second worst only to The Expendables. Really? In my opinion, the only thing Expendables had going for it was a bunch of big action stars hanging out together for one really bad hour and a half. (Thank goodness for the hotness that is Jason Statham...)
Drive had much more going for it than that.
Starting, of course, with the incredibly sexy Ryan Gosling.
The opening scene in the movie is quite impressive, with Gosling delivering some fabulous driving skills as a hired get-away man. Perhaps it gave my husband a false sense of security that Drive was a fast-paced, high-action thrilling ride, like Fast and the Furious.
It's not. Not at all. But if you're prepared for that, you can settle in for what I thought was a stroke of cinematic brilliance. The movie is not without its flaws, of course. The first half is a bit slow, and there were times during Gosling's quiet, stoic, and somewhat zombie-like character performance that I wanted to shout at the screen, "Just talk, damn it!"
That's not saying anything about Gosling's performance. He's brilliant.
As is the violence. Saying that may unnerve some people, but as a fan of Quentin Tarantino, and a lover of thrillers, I've seen gore that ranks much higher on the gross scale. I don't mind when violence makes a point other than just shocking the audience. To me, Drive achieved this goal - and then some.
Perhaps more importantly, the movie seems stuck to me, evoking a buffet of emotions I can't quite shake. Maybe it's the gore, but more likely it's the style in which the movie was shot - and a little bit of Gosling's sexy smile. There were moments in the film that literally took my breath away. I want to write something this well done - and have Gosling star in it, of course.
The soundtrack is spectacular. In fact, I'm listening to it right now as I write this post. For the second time this morning.
It wasn't a stretch to choose this week's muse avatar. Part of me was already heading in that direction because he's a favourite of my friend Stephanie's (and I accidentally gave the nod to Ryan Reynolds last time), but after seeing Drive, I'm all over Gosling for the role. I'm sure he'll make a great muse in what's shaping up to be a busy work and writing week.
I'm also quite certain, I'll be listening to this song over and over again to fuel that inspiration:
Love <3
Happy Monday!
- Dawn
PS - Did you see Drive? What did you think?
The Book In My Bag Today: Tunnel Vision, Gary Braver
Very much looking forward to seeing this thanks to you! :o)
ReplyDeleteMaybe we could rent it while you are here...I won't force Jeff to watch it again, but I'd love to see it again. xo
DeleteI've heard it's good and it's sitting in my Netflix queue as we speak. May have to bump it up a couple of spots... :)
ReplyDeleteAnd PS. I really liked The Expendables! I thought it was absolutely ridiculous, of course, but it was an hour and a half of gratuitous action, beefcakes, and fun... Can't wait for #2! Haha.
DeleteYes, bump it up. I do think you would enjoy it... Though, I question that now that you said you enjoyed Expendables (and you weren't joking, either...). I'm steering CLEAR of the second one. Jason Statham can only sustain me for one bad movie.
DeleteI've been really curious about that movie. I read the EW review, and I'm pretty sure they loved it. Interesting... Thanks, Dawn! :o) <3
ReplyDeleteThanks, LTM. Please let me know if you do watch it. I'd be curious as to your take. I read a great Rolling Stone interview about it as well - the writers there all but drooled on it. I feel good about my decision to go against my husband :-) xo
DeleteMovies that you can't quite shake are the best in my book. I'll have to drag my husband to see Drive and get his impression, then I can compare it to your husband's! :-)
ReplyDeleteGreat idea. A word to the wise, one of my friends watched it this weekend, as well. She said her husband lasted only five minutes before he went back to watching the Superbowl. It's not even a chick flick, but maybe it was tough to compete with the game :-)
DeleteDon't feel bad. My husband and I went to see The Woman in Black. He said it was good, but it would have been better with a plot. I said there was a plot. (It just wasn't twisted like in a Stephen King novel).
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen it, but according to Candace, Mr. Gosling's first name is actually Abs.
ReplyDelete