In the movie Drive, director Nicholas Winding Refn’s sophisticated twist on the action-flick genre is a visual treat that will engage audiences with its stunning visuals and sudden escalations of violence. Ryan Gosling plays a stunt driver by day, and a get-away driver by night, who gets entangled in the criminal underworld and has to fight (and drive) his way out.

WSPN contributors Annelise Cohen and Jacob Sussman sat down to discuss the film.

Senior Annelise Cohen: I loved this movie. It was entertaining and very dramatic, creating a great atmosphere throughout the film. The only negative aspect of the movie was its cliché plot, but it didn’t ruin the film.

Junior Jacob Sussman: I agree that the plot wasn’t particularly interesting. Screenwriter Hossein Amini manages to squeeze a few precious drops of originality from the overused source material, but the narrative of “Drive” mainly functions as a vehicle to transport the audience from point A to point B. It’s Refn’s directing abilities that make this a journey worth traveling.

Cohen: The images were beautiful to watch. Even scenes of Ryan Gosling’s character driving were absorbing. There were scenes where you could feel the tension resonating out of the screen, especially in the first thrilling action scene, where we saw Gosling’s skills as a driver. The visuals and the retro soundtrack worked together perfectly too.

Sussman: We agree the film looked gorgeous. Still, Refn should learn to let his films breathe a little, especially in terms of acting. The characters seemed suffocated by the predetermined frames and artificial lighting, an unfortunate byproduct of Refn’s visual perfectionism. Of course, Gosling and Mulligan’s painfully awkward smiling didn’t help the film’s realism.

Cohen: See, I loved Gosling’s smiles. He had these subtle nuances that are only expressed in his face. He’s a great communicator of emotion without speaking.

Sussman: I guess Ryan Goslings’s charm didn’t work on me.

Cohen: The acting aside, the characters themselves were fairly standard, but had enough depth to keep the movie interesting. The characters didn’t always do what I expected they would in a typical action drama. Gosling in particular had to deal with a host of moral dilemmas.

Sussman: More like contradictions. “Drive” may be attempting a high brow approach to the action film, but it still adopted some of the narrative pitfalls of the genre, like the lead actor/hero being excused from all moral judgment. Despite that, I enjoyed several of the supporting characters. At first they appeared to be cliches, but they gradually branched off from the initial archetype into more complex and fully realized personalities.

Cohen: What did you think about some of the “action-movie” qualities? I thought it made it exciting to watch. The extreme violence gave the film a feeling of suspense. Certain scenes had me jumping out of my seat.

Sussman: The action-heavy second act was what made the movie for me. I particularly loved this movie for using violence in such an effective manner. A lot of directors dowse their films with blood for cheap thrills, but Refn was a minimalist until it counted, letting go of all censorship for jaw dropping effect. One scene contrasted a display of angelic sensuality with 10 seconds of curb stomping, a powerful example of the cinematic potential of violence when used correctly. Hollywood could learn a lot from this approach.

Cohen: This movie is definitely not for anyone who can’t appreciate a good curb stomping, or a shotgun to the head, but it was not needlessly violent. I would highly recommend it to anyone who can handle the gore. And any hardcore Ryan Gosling fans will certainly be happy.

Conlcusion: Drive could have been just another action movie, but an assortment of stylistic decisions and twists makes this film a truly unique experience, which is a rare find at the movies these days.