Drive

Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Albert Brooks

Directed by Nicholas Winding Refn

Rating: B

Part-time Hollywood stuntman, part-time getaway driver, Ryan Gosling plays a mysterious character who's only referred to as "Driver". Though a man of few words, Gosling's character has an underlying sense of power to him.

Gosling's quiet character keeps to himself and manages to stay out of trouble until he meets the next door neighbor, Irene (Mulligan). Her car won't start and he drives her home from the garage he works at, but after a pit stop driving down to a small stream where her son can play. Irene's husband, Standard, gets released from jail and at first he is suspicious of the neighbor's intention.

Standard has some debts to pay that he can't afford and being the good guy he is, Gosling's character lends his getaway driving skills. When a robbery goes wrong, Gosling's character is left realizing he's been setup. He shows no mercy when it comes to protecting Irene and her son and goes the distance to make sure they stay out of any danger.

The first scene of "Drive" sets the pace of the movie; slow but with flashes of action. The film has an eerie sense of real life to it. It's not rushed like most action movies are today, so viewers feel time passing as slow as their own life. "Drive" is based on the novel by James Sallis, which I haven't read so I don't know if the book moves just as slow. The plot, meanwhile, was intriguing and what is worth watching for. Ryan Gosling's character is flat and viewers don't get to know much about him. He barely speaks and doesn't show much emotion, but his motivations are clear. He will protect the ones he grows attached to.

The trailer gives the whole movie away and is misleading. It leads viewers to believe it's fast paced and has lots of action when it's just the opposite. It doesn't mean that it's a bad film because it's worth watching once. It might be more of an acquired taste to fully enjoy it, like Refn's previous films; the style is somewhat similar to "Bronson", slow electro-music completes the soundtrack and a character that may be hard to like. Have caffeine at hand before sitting down to watch "Drive" and it may not be so hard to sit through.

Easy Virtue

Ben Barnes, Jessica Biel, Colin Firth, Kristin Scott Thomas

Directed by Stephen Elliott

Rating: B

When a newly married couple go to stay at the husband's family country estate in England, the impending feud between daughter-in-law and mother-in-law is obvious from the start.

As Mrs. Whittaker (Thomas) learns that her son, John (Barnes), has abruptly married an American during his travels, she immediately finds reason to dislike her. John was promised to a neighbor's daughter that would connect the two families into one large estate. John is young and foolishly in love, but he is blind to his wife's discontent living in the country. Larita (Biel) is a city girl with a need for a faster paced life racing cars. Larita's only other ally is the estranged father of John, Mr. Whittaker (Firth).

Mrs. Whittaker and Larita go head-to-head, trying to show each other who is the alpha in this country home. John's two younger sister's don't help Larita's cause when she accidentally causes embarrassment and harm to the two. John's youngest sister contacts a relative in New York and digs up Larita's dirty past for all to hear.

"Easy Virtue" is a surprisingly enjoyable film. The mother-in-law hates daughter-in-law was predictable but the characters helped move the story along at an easy-going pace. While Mrs. Whittaker had wished for her son to marry the neighbor's daughter, she doesn't force them uncomfortably together as other predictable movies do. John and the neighbor's daughter get along fine enough but there is no blossoming romance to steal the spotlight. Being the new person in the house brings attention to Larita. She wishes that everyone will accept her since she grew up in a different lifestyle. Her fair treatment of the household staff holds her in favor over the residents themselves, who have their rules they stick to.

As a period piece, "Easy Virtue" should not scare away viewers. It's not a depressing drama nor will it bore you with subtle history lessons. There's humor and not an overly-sickening romance like "Pride & Prejudice" to scare the male viewers away. It's also one of the better roles Jessica Biel has portrayed. So if you're looking for a movie that won't puzzle your mind with a confusing story line and are looking for something different to watch, "Easy Virtue" may be the movie you should try.