DRIVE Soundtrack Is An iTunes Hit

DRIVE is a stylish new film starring Ryan Gosling as a stunt car/getaway driver opened this weekend to great critical acclaim.  I saw it this weekend and have to say it is one of the most cinematic movies of the year.  The director, Danish auteur Nicholas Winding Refn, knows how to create some beautiful images and truly creates a mood reminiscent of a Miami Vice episode or a Michael Mann movie, with a sleek 80s vibe.

A great deal of that vibe comes from the film's soundtrack which, not surprisingly, is doing even better than the film.  The movie opened in the number 7 position on the Box Office charts while the soundtrack shot to number 5 on iTunes.  The album has a mix of some great new songs, along with scoring by Cliff Martinez that sounds like an update of Tangerine Dream, who did the memorable score for RISKY BUSINESS.

Unfortunately (or fortunately), I think I like the music is better than the actual movie, which sorta fell apart about halfway through due to a weak screenplay.  But it's great to see audiences embracing a film which is moody, interesting and a real, old-fashioned movie in that it tells its story visually and with a certain, deliberate pace rare in the Hollywood hyper-editing we've grown accustomed in the post-Michael Bay world. And Ryan Gosling is an actor who can definitely keep your attention, even when he's doing nothing but chewing a toothpick.

NetPix: Lars & The Real Girl

Ever since I was in film school, people have been asking me what movies they should see. Lately this question has evolved into friends looking for films for their NetFlix queue. Thus...one of the semi-regular features I'll be doing is "NetPix", where I tell you what you should see and, hopefully, you heed my advice and love my recommendations. If not, it's Netflix so it's not like you're out 12 bucks or anything!

My inaugural "NetPix" is a movie that ended up on my own queue reluctantly; "Lars And The Real Girl". I had heard about when it was released as it received some pretty decent notices and awards nominations. Still,I was wary of "Lars" premise, about a guy in a small town who starts dating a full-size, human sex doll. The whole thing sounded a little twee. (Does anyone use that word anymore?)

Well, I was completely wrong. "Lars" is a total trifecta hit; gorgeously shot, beautifully acted,and sharply written. It's a sweet and quirky story that is actually a bit more complicated than I expected it to be, probably due to the lightweight impression created by its TV commercials. (I think that, as a rule, good movies do not boil down into good 30-second TV ads.) "Lars" works so well because it takes its premise, that Ryan Gosling has fallen for a fake girlfriend, quite seriously. There is some real psychology in the movie explaining this phenomenon,presented credibly by Patricia Clarkson's smokey-voiced local doctor. But "Lars" does have a sense of humor too. In fact, it is quite funny as it delicately walks that very fine line between silly and sad.

I'm surprised the film did not get some more serious juice around awards time. Maybe if "Juno" (which gave quirky a bad name) hadn't taken up all the awards oxygen in '08, this lovely little movie could have breathed a bit more and taken home some honors. But, in the end it's still a damn good movie. And if it doesn't make you a little weepy (in a good way!), your tear ducts may need to be checked.