Wow. I did not expect this. I think Drive might be my film of 2011. I do like watching movies that I know absolutely nothing about, and being very pleasantly surprised.
I'm going to be very brief about this one, because:
- I don't want to risk giving any plot spoilers, I loved it being totally ignorant about it...I wouldn't want to spoil that for anyone else.
- I finally got the guts up to go and sign up with an American dentist last night after a year and a half (I actually went to see my British one whilst on holiday in the UK in 2010) and apparently I have the largest tooth/jaw infection they've ever seen (news to me, though now I've been told something's there I keep imagining I feel pain) and I have to make an appointment asap to go and see a oral surgeon to have a molar taken out and the infection dealt with.
So, Drive.
I LOVE the start, it's fantastic. The precision. The professionalism. The knowing a craft down to the minutest detail. The quiet confidence. I LOVE the silence, the awkwardness of the pauses for the viewer. I adore that the driver has no name and is just called the/your 'Driver'. I LOVE the surprises.
I will say as a warning that there is very graphic violence in this movie, that even made me have to look away at points.....and I'm a Kill Bill and Machete fan. It's not so much the unexpected violence, that I could cope with, but there are some moments of premeditated lingering violence. To think I was actually watching this to see if it was suitable for Goth Child to watch.....it most certainly isn't.
But the violence is just a teeny tiny part to the movie, which is so much more.
Ryan Gosling and the rest of the cast are quite superb. I liked his performance in The Ides of March but as the Driver he's superbly measured.
It reminded me of Taxi Driver, of El Mariachi/Desperado and there are bits of it that feel like 80's movie montages....you know like they have the musical interludes say in Pretty in Pink when you see Ducky riding around on his bike to Banarama's Cruel Summer....oh hang on, that's Karate Kid isn't it....well, there are bits of Drive like that too. You'll understand what I mean when you see it.
Anyway, Drive....I blooming loved it, and can't believe it's only been nominated for a Best Sound Editing Oscar.
Ok. Time to ring an oral surgeon....
My scoring:
Would I recommend it to others to watch? Yes, but know that there is some extreme graphic violence in it
Would I watch it again? Yes
What did I think about the sound editing? Haha, this is such a film about quiet brooding, uncomfortable silences...it's really difficult for me to judge without watching it again listening more carefully
What score would I give it out of 10? 9.5
And if you want a full list of the 61 movies up for Oscars in 2012, including their categories, I've made a list you can print off using Google docs: Tempest's 2012 Oscars Watchalong
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