Review of The Place Beyond the Pines (2013) by Jason T — 29 Dec 2015

I have a theory about this film. What initially could be viewed as a mildly complex drama about the effects of daddy drama, is upon further reflection revealed to actually be the sequel to "Drive", also starring Ryan Gosling.

You may recall that the driver in that film was last seen driving into the sunset after killing his immediate threat. Well, the character who was unnamed in "Drive" is named Luke and in order to escape the higher up mafia dons who no doubt would be after him following the events of the previously named movie, goes slumming in a carnival. He acquires numerous tattoos and trades in stunt car driving for a motorbike act.

The reason why this scenario seems so plausible to me is because Gosling seems to play the same character in both films: quiet, a loner, susceptible to bouts of violence. Neither characterization goes deep enough in either film. We know Luke wants a relationship with his son because his father didn't have one with him. The motivation goes no further than that. He's only in the film for about 50 minutes, and then the focus is on the officer that kills him, played by Bradley Cooper.

His character is even more frustrating than Gosling's. He does give a good performance that tries it's best to fill in the blanks that screen play leaves wide open. He's a decent and honest cop, who suddenly flips a switch and becomes ruthlessly ambitious. That did not seem consistent to me, even with his father's machinations in the background. Before this turn, he does have a great scene of anxiousness when being led into the woods by a crooked cop who may be planning on killing him.

The third segment focuses on the sons of the two characters I have described above. They are both drug users and the real impetus of this segment is when Luke's son discovers his friend's father is his father's killer..............coincidences abound in this segment.

I can't say the movie wasn't watchable, I do wish the third segment was more believable along with character motivations. The ending of the movie tries to tie things together in a really unearned sort of way. Score: 6.5.