Review: The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)

By Mel Valentin
April 12, 2013 Reviews 3 Comments

PHOTOGRAPHER SELECT

Cast: , ,
Director: Derek Cianfrance
Country: USA
Genre: Crime | Drama
Official Trailer: Here

Editor’s Notes: The Place Beyond the Pines expands into more cinemas today, April 12th. If you’ve already seen the film we’d love to hear your thoughts on it, or if you’re looking forward to seeing it this weekend, please tell us in the comments section below or in our new Next Projection Forums.

Moviegoers can be forgiven if they thought Derek Cianfrance’s last film, Blue Valentine, was his first. It wasn’t, but it was his first film in 12 years. A harrowing, raw, authentic examination of a disintegrating marriage, Blue Valentine was rightly hailed as the work of an extremely talented, skillful filmmaker, an actor-focused filmmaker adept at obtaining near career best performances from Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams as a mismatched couple irrevocably headed toward painful separation and divorce. Although more than worthy of Oscar consideration, Blue Valentine received only one nomination for Williams’ performance (she lost). After a relatively short hiatus, Cianfrance has returned with another ambitious, if ultimately flawed, film, a generation-spanning crime-drama set in and around Schenectady, New York.

After a relatively short hiatus, Cianfrance has returned with another ambitious, if ultimately flawed, film, a generation-spanning crime-drama set in and around Schenectady, New York.

Developed around three, interconnected stories that unfold chronologically, The Place Beyond the Pines initially focuses on Luke Glanton (Ryan Gosling), a drifter and motorcyclist with a seemingly dangerous act involving two other motorcyclists and a giant steel cage. Cianfrance introduces Luke as he prepares for the act through a continuous take reminiscent (and probably inspired) by similarly handled tracking shots in Martin Scorsese’s early ‘90s crime dramas (Goodfellas, Casino). It’s the first, but certainly not the last, indication of Cianfrance’s desire to break away from Blue Valentine’s claustrophobic aesthetic for an action-oriented one. On its own, the opening sequence is a bravado piece of filmmaking, but it’s also an enticement, a promise of things to come for the adventurous moviegoer willing to give Cianfrance their undivided attention.

Screen Shot 2013-04-12 at 9.44.30 AM

That nothing else in The Place Beyond the Pines matches that sequence comes as a minor disappointment. After all, Cianfrance has a reputation as a drama-first filmmaker to uphold. Once we’re past that sequence, The Place Beyond the Pines settles on a working-class domestic drama with Luke, a man with a turbulent, violent past tattooed all over his body, unexpectedly learning that he’s a father thanks to a one-night stand with a local, Romina (Eva Mendes), a year earlier. While still obviously drawn to Luke, in part because of the danger and freedom Luke represents, Romina has settled into a domestic relationship with another man, Kofi (Mahershalalhashbaz Ali). Kofi’s presence in Romina’s life, however, does little to deter Luke from the ill-conceived decision to remain in Schenectady and attempt to win Romina back.

A chance encounter with Robin Van Der Zee (Ben Mendelsohn), a local auto mechanic, convinces Luke his future lies in robbing banks. With Robin planning the robberies and waiting with a truck a mile or two away, Luke uses his motorcycle-riding skills to evade capture, at least initially. Cianfrance shoots and edits each robbery masterfully, never losing sight of the spatial geography necessary to create genuine tension and suspense. Luke thinks money will buy Romina’s interest and make Kofi disappear. He’s wrong, of course, and it takes a rookie cop, Avery Cross (Bradley Cooper), to shatter Luke’s unrealistic dreams and complete the first of two major narrative changes involving Cross. Not only does Cross take on the role of protagonist, but The Place Beyond the Pines jumps ahead time wise by more than a year.

A non-linear approach might have suited Cianfrance’s thematic concerns more fully, but it also would have made The Place Beyond the Pines less marketable to mainstream audiences.

When it makes that jump, The Place Beyond the Pines becomes an entirely different film. It’s no longer focused on crime and criminals, on the pursuit thereof by the police, but on a Copland-inspired police corruption drama, with Ray Liotta making an unsurprising appearance as Deluca, a corrupt cop who tries to bring Cross, newly minted as a hero-cop, over to his side. Cross proves to be far more politically shrewd and astute, a by-product of his upbringing and relationship with his father, Al (Harris Yulin), a powerful state judge eager to see his son follow in his political footsteps. Possibly driven by his principles, possibly by his desire to prove himself to his father, Cross risks losing his career and his life to out the corrupt cops in his precinct.

Screen Shot 2013-04-12 at 9.59.47 AMA third jump in time pushes Cross and his political ambitions into the background, focusing instead on Cross and Luke’s teenage sons, AJ (Emory Cohen), a spoiled narcissist, and Jason (Dane DeHaan), an intense, troubled brooder. The last story also pushes Cianfrance’s thematic concerns to the foreground. From the beginning, he’s been interested in the relationship between fathers and sons, sons and surrogate fathers, and the long-term consequences of momentary mistakes or errors in judgments can have on the survivors. By forcing thematic concerns to the foreground, Cianfrance repeatedly sacrifices plausibility, opting for narrative shortcuts (mostly eyebrow-raising coincidences) to manipulate his characters to move to their designated spots for those consequences to play themselves out and the characters to exit the screen.

Ultimately, the three-part, chronological structure leaves much to be desired. It both feels too long (three, generation-spanning stories in one) and too short (each story, especially the second and third, feel shortchanged by running time limitations). A non-linear approach might have suited Cianfrance’s thematic concerns more fully, but it also would have made The Place Beyond the Pines less marketable to mainstream audiences. In this case, it probably would have been worth the commercial and perhaps just as importantly, the critical risk.

70/100 ~ GOOD. By forcing thematic concerns to the foreground, Cianfrance repeatedly sacrifices plausibility, opting for narrative shortcuts (mostly eyebrow-raising coincidences) to manipulate his characters to move to their designated spots for those consequences to play themselves out and the characters to exit the screen.
By Mel Valentin
Mel Valentin hails from the great state of New Jersey. After attending NYU undergrad (politics and economics double major, religious studies minor) and grad school (law), he made the move, physically, mentally, and spiritually to California, specifically San Francisco. Mel's written more than 1,400 film-related reviews and articles. He's a member of the San Francisco Film Critics Circle.
  • http://www.facebook.com/bryan.murray.33 Bryan Murray

    Looks like a must see film for me

  • Daniel Tucker

    I’m going to stubbornly hope this movie is good until the credits roll. Only then will I be disappointed. haha

  • FilmFracture

    I do agree with you on many of your points, Mel. I for one liked it more than you, and gave it a more favorable review; mainly because I know my parent’s would love this movie. They don’t get many these days. Loved reading your thoughts on it, and thank you for commenting on the ridiculous third-act “twist”-that pissed me off for being incredibly unnecessary.