The Place Beyond the Pines Review

I was really looking forward to this film. Derek Cianfrance created a melancholy portrait of a marriage that goes south in Blue Valentine and I was ecstatic to see more of his work.  This film appealed to me because I am a big fan of the crime genre, and with Ryan Gosling as the lead (supposedly) and with this being in the trusted hands of Derek Cianfrance, I expected this to be a good film.

And I was right. The Place Beyond the Pines is an ambitious and original vision that is unlike any film I've ever seen before.  For starters, this film is structured very differently from any film I've ever seen, however, it really works and it definitely makes the film unique.  This film wasn't quite what I expected, though, as we jump from Ryan Gosling's story to Bradley Cooper's story to his son's story.  Ryan Gosling ended up not having as much screen time as I had expected, but I was okay with it.  I did, however, enjoy his storyline the most.  This is strictly a crime DRAMA.  Maybe that's why I enjoyed Gosling's section the most, as it was the fastest paced of the three stories.  After his story comes to a close, the film slows down drastically.  I didn't expect it to slow down as much as it did, so I believe I would enjoy this film more after viewing it for a second time.  Bradley Cooper proves himself once again as a strong up and coming actor.  He gives a great performance in this and he has completely 180'd my opinion of him.  The cinematography in this film is gorgeous.  Although shaky at times (although this is a great improvement over Blue Valentine) the DP really had his ideas together and told the story visually, and it really worked.  There isn't a lot of music in this film, but when there is, it is used carefully and intentionally, which is also a great strength of this film.

There are a few drawbacks of this film.  It is too long by about 20 minutes.  Some things could have been trimmed so I wasn't shifting in my seat.  Around the third act, we jump ahead 15 years.  It wasn't really done smoothly, either.  A full-screen title reading "15 years later" shows up on the screen, and we are thrown into the story from there.  I thought that could've been done more smoothly, because it was very jarring, and it's a method that doesn't often work in films, in my humble opinion.  While the cinematography looks great, there are a few instances where it doesn't work.  For example (minor spoiler alert) Ryan Gosling assaults someone.  From the camera angle, it's hard to see the actual assault, so in that sense it didn't work.  Also, a very minor but noteworthy flaw are some of Ryan Gosling's tattoos.  They look like they were drawn on with a sharpie.  But whatever I'm not sweating it. 

Although it has a few flaws, The Place Beyond the Pines lived up to my expectations and is worthy of being called The Best Film of the Year This Far.  That's right.  This year has been really bad for movies, but this film makes it slightly bearable.  If you are a fan of serious crime dramas, this is a great film worth checking out.  Just be prepared to sit for what feels like longer than the actual run time.

MY RATING:

4 out of 5

-KEVIN MILLWARD-