The
Place Beyond the Pines is a taut drama about the legacy of violence. It’s structured in three distinct acts. The first details a carnie (Ryan Gosling)
trying to set up roots the only way he can, by robbing banks to provide for his
infant son. The second act follows a
young cop (Bradley Cooper) killing the thief and being haunted by the fact he’s
left his young son an orphan. Sickened
by the corruption in his police department, he vows to root out the crooked
cops. The third act.... Well… that would be telling.
The
all-star cast is stellar. What I liked most
about the movie was that when you saw a big name show up, it wasn’t just stunt
casting. When you see Ray Liotta playing
an unhinged dirty cop, it isn’t just a cinematic shorthand; he’s given a layered,
three-dimension character to play. The whole
cast is like that. When you see Dane
DeHaan playing a seemingly typical high school kid, you know he’s going to be
anything but. Ben Mendelsohn at first
glance looks to be nothing more than a white trash crook, but he reveals a
surprisingly tender side to him as the film goes on. Eva Mendes is heartbreaking as Gosling’s baby
mama and Mahershala Ali is excellent as her new man.
The first act is quite strong. It’s anchored
by a dynamite performance by Gosling. Even
though he’s reckless and potentially unstable, you can’t help but sympathize
with his predicament. The middle section
is a harrowing bit of police drama. The
sort of movie Sidney Lumet used to make.
I can honestly say it got so intense that at one point I had a knot in
my stomach. The final act ties the two
plots together beautifully. It’s easily
the weakest of the three, but that in no way means it’s not effective. Some may call the ending predictable. Inevitable is more like it.
Writer/director
Derek Cianfrance previously collaborated with Gosling on Blue Valentine.
No comments:
Post a Comment