Since we had a bit of a Valentine’s Day Massacre going on here earlier and our feeds were blowing up with our own stupid posts, I thought it would be kinder to put them all in a list.
So, here you go, some more valentines (and valentine’s day related material) we made or came across:
Michael has been anticipating the arrival of Drive in the mail for a while now. You should have seen him, giddy and jumping.
:You go run your errands and when you get back we can watch DRIVE!!!:
I didn’t actually know what I was getting into, so the MPAA warning was helpful. The film was rated R for “strong brutal bloody violence, language and some nudity.” The Motion Picture Association of America does not play and neither does “Driver.
The editing and composition is downright strange, and definitely takes some getting used to. Michael insists that “those things [beyond the frame] aren’t important, since your mind can fill in the gaps anyway.” It builds a pretty consistent suspense around every scene that your brain isn’t quite able to compute. (Or maybe that’s just me, because I am a control freak?)
As the movie went on, it became more familiar (but never comfortable), and I began to appreciate it. Now, looking back, I think I loved it. The director (Nicolas Winding Refn) used the same editor as he’s used on his other films (Valhalla Rising, Bronson, which Michael has seen but I haven’t), and Tom Sigel for cinematography who has done more movies than I can even count (The Usual Suspects, Three Kings, Valkyrie, lots more). Golden triumverate of awesome.
When the action is not intense, the movie makes a pretty picture. One of my favorite scenes from the first-watch is Bernie Rose (Albert Brooks) sitting on the sofa after [REDACTED].
It’s spare and affecting, even though it’s a bit of a surprise from Bernie.
The characters are all strong, even the small ones. According to the bonus materials, the characters were fleshed out a great deal for the film - much beyond what was in the original book - and it shows. I’ve not read the book, but I suppose I will now. (Edit: I just read the “look inside!” and… don’t read the first page if you haven’t seen the movie yet. Meta Spoiler Alert!)
I’m not sure how these characters jibe with Sallis’ original intentions, but they certainly tell a story of their own, despite their frequent reticence.
When the movie came out, I heard a lot of people say they didn’t like it. I think those people were probably disappointed that it wasn’t your average action/drag-racing/heist movie. Well, I’m glad!
On the surface, the movie reads like a 100-minute music video, but to say it *is* a 100-minute music video would be dismissive of its triumphs. There’s a great deal more to Drive than 80s-inspired electronica and pink brush script fonts. (That stuff is still awesome, though.)
If you don’t mind the “strong brutal bloody violence,” we highly recommend a watch.
_ e
P.S. I wrote a review about a Ryan Gosling movie without pre-teen squeee-ing! I deserve a medal.
Hey Zombie hounds (not to be confused with zombie-hounds),
If you don’t have an AK-47 equipped with an electric chainsaw in your apocalypse arsenal, George Romero probably doesn’t like you. You should fix that.
