The Driver (1978, Walter Hill)

The mysterious and shadowy world of noir, where shady characters and backstabbing dames co-habitate, is designed to offer contour and texture to The Driver. But in the imaginative hands of director Walter Hill, the film doesn’t always follow the formula; the filmmaker is determined to add a few new twists to the noir canon. This suspenser, with cool anti-hero and hypnotic action set-pieces, plays like a prolonged moment of deep meditation. The evolution of storyline, which is encased in the archetypical three-act heist plot, evolves into a catharsis for the main character that helps him think differently about the circumstances of his existence and the consequences of his actions.

Ryan O’Neal plays the title character; a guy who seems to be on a continuous sef-quest. We don’t even get to know the guy’s real name, which is an obvious indication that we are dealing with an icon, not a real person. In fact, no one in the film has a name – all the characters are identified by their occupations. We also get the mandatory female fatale, played by the beautiful Isabelle Adjani, whose moral ambiguity spices up the story. Bruce Dern is a dirty cop who is obsessed with capturing the bad guys. They are all pictograms. Names are not important. The time and/or the place are not relevant information either. It’s about themes and technique.

The Driver deals with lots of intriguing ideas that should satisfy fans of noir, and caper movies. O’Neal gives one of his most effective performances, Adjani is a very effective anti-heroine, and Dern is a hoot. Director Hill’s direction is economical, yet energetic and very brainy. Hill’s production is probably the best of its kind; an existential car-chase movie. The Driver won’t knock your socks off, but it is more complex than your average action-packed movie. It’s a little gem.

~ by gelpi2008 on Tuesday, November 10, 2009.