Back in 2010 Ryan Gosling (DRIVE) burst into the mainstream eye with Oscar nominated BLUE VALENTINE directed by Derek Cianfrance. The film was recognized as an emotionally gut-wrenching family drama that chronicled one couple’s ascension from courtship into blissful love and finally soul-crushing defeat. Cianfrance was touted for extracting a raw and vulnerable performance from Gosling, whom opposite Michelle Williams (BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN), garnered tons of critical acclaim.
This year, the writer/director has teamed back up with Ryan “so hot right now” Gosling for THE PLACE BEYOND THE PINES, the story of a motorcycle stunt driver turned felon in order to provide for his family and the cop (Bradley “also so hot right now” Cooper; LIMITLESS) who will stop at nothing to crack the case. The synopsis might not win points for originality but that means little if the execution is done right. Let’s have a look.
[youtube]http://youtu.be/l8Oi65ILQ9o[/youtube]
Judging from the trailer alone, this looks damn good. It gives off a vibe of working-class family drama with scenes of in-your-face tension. Gosling (channeling his character from DRIVE) looks to be an unstoppable force that crashes up against Cooper’s immovable object. We look to have two opposing lead performances in a movie where you don’t know who will live, who will prevail. With a great supporting cast that includes Ray Liotta and Ben Mendelsohn (both from the under appreciated KILLING THEM SOFTLY) and most impressively the gifted cinematographer Sean Bobbitt (HUNGER and SHAME), I’m very excited for this film. The movie is a 140 minutes long which I hope means the filmmakers have chosen to take their time to tell a fully-fledged story. From the trailer I expect to see a lot of character development, gritty performances and beautiful shots. Here’s hoping.
THE PLACE BEYOND THE PINES hits US theaters in limited release on March 29th, 2013.
