Screened as part of NZIFF 2011

Drive 2011

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn

Hollywood reclaims the Embassy screen in style with our Closing Night screening of the film that took the Best Director’s laurels at Cannes this year.

USA In English
100 minutes CinemaScope

Producers

Marc E. Platt
,
Adam Siegel
,
Gigi Pritzker
,
Michel Litvak
,
John Palermo

Screenplay

Hossein Amini. Based on the book by James Sallis

Photography

Newton Thomas Sigel

Editor

Matt Newman

Production designer

Beth Mickle

Costume designer

Erin Benach

With

Ryan Gosling (Driver)
,
Carey Mulligan (Irene)
,
Bryan Cranston (Shannon)
,
Albert Brooks (Bernie Rose)
,
Oscar Isaac (Standard)
,
Ron Perlman (Nino)
,
Christina Hendricks (Blanche)

Festivals

Cannes (In Competition) 2011

Awards

Best Director, Cannes Film Festival 2011

Elsewhere

“If The Fast and the Furious franchise borrowed liberally from 1980s action tropes and ditched plot in favor of sheer speed, it would probably resemble the mad hustle of Drive, Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn’s thrilling foray into the Hollywood arena. Combing a memorably gritty Ryan Gosling performance with the breakneck tempo of the getaway cars his character handles for hire, Refn churns out a hyperactive love letter to road rage with unapologetic glee. It’s a total blast. The tense pedal-to-the-medal routine begins in the opening minutes and continues, sporadically, all the way through the bloody finale…

A speed demon for hire whose risky gig eventually lands him in trouble, Gosling’s character finally allows the actor to play the sort of tough guy role that fits his slick demeanor. For his day job, the driver moonlights as a stunt double, suggesting that his only life exists behind the wheel. That addiction becomes troubled when Gosling falls for his soft-spoken neighbor, Irene (Carey Mulligan), a fragile woman raising her young son while his father is stuck in jail… Rounding out the cast, Ron Perlman and Albert Brooks relish their opportunities to play slimy one-note villains… As Gosling increasingly takes on the role of lethal avenger, intent on guarding Irene and her child from harm at all costs, Drive not only delivers a prolonged adrenaline rush – it has adrenaline wedded to its DNA.” — Eric Kohn, indieWIRE