The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)
★★★½ — The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)
Derek Cianfrance made his name with Blue Valentine (2010), the raw, non-linear Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams relationship drama that announced him as a filmmaker willing to take structural risks. The Place Beyond the Pines reunites him with Gosling and pushes that instinct considerably further, unfolding across three loosely connected stories that span roughly fifteen years in Schenectady, New York. Shot largely on location in upstate New York with a modest $15 million budget, the film is an original screenplay rather than an adaptation, though Cianfrance has cited Greek tragedy and the idea of inherited sin as loose frameworks. The supporting cast includes Eva Mendes, Bradley Cooper, Ray Liotta, and a then-relatively-unknown Miles Teller, and the score was composed by Mike Patton of Faith No More.
I watched this when it first came out and remembered "it was good". Just rewatched today with my girlfriend and I'm so glad I'd forgotten most of it. All I remembered was "dirtbike and bank robberies" so here I was expecting Hell or Highwater and instead I got an absolute shellshock of a movie. The soundtrack by Michael Patton was so good for the setting and the acting of Gosling, Cooper, and Mendes in particular were great as you'd expect. Ray Liotta, although not in the film for long, was chilling. He added a sinister aura for sure. Overall I thought the story was paced really well and when one segment flowed Into the next, it felt congruent. Would recommend.
Rating: ★★★½ | Year: 2012 | Watched: 2025-04-04
Where to watch (UK)
Stream: Studiocanal Presents Amazon Channel
Rent: Apple TV Store · Rakuten TV · Google Play Movies · Sky Store
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Physical: Amazon UK
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