This is insane! I wouldn’t ever pegged the movie Drive to be a movie I would actually like, but lo and behold!
There’s little dialog in this movie, but that doesn’t matter. Ryan Gosling plays a detached, just breathing unnamed stunt driver/mechanic by day and getaway driver by night. He meets his neighbor Irene and her son Benicio in a supermarket, and they strike up something like a friendship – more of a relationship. Irene’s husband Standard is in jail, but is soon released. It turns out her husband had ranked up some debts – protection money from when he was in jail – and it is now being fanatically collected also putting Irene and Benicio in danger. The driver offers Standard his help in doing a job so that he will be free of his debts and he could live in peace with his wife and son. Unfortunately, Standard and the driver are double-crossed and trouble ensues. While the driver can be a ruthless killer, he somehow earns our sympathy because he isn’t doing it for himself. He’s selflessly protecting Irene and Benicio. The scene in the elevator shows the duality of the driver’s character and is, in my opinion, also the best scene.
The soundtrack of this film is a-ma-zing. It wouldn’t have been the same without it. It was mostly composed by Cliff Martinez, but also contains Johnny Jewel and others. It gives this movie an 80s sound that really suits its entire atmopshere.