But this film belongs to Ryan Gosling's otherwise unnamed "Driver", who in decades past would have been played by a Clint Eastwood or a Steve McQueen. Not that this is exactly Bullitt - Gosling's wheelman prefers stealth over stickshift. That's apparent from a gripping, sharply-edited early scene which has him expertly ferrying a robbery crew away from the LAPD.
It's a sequence which shows that Drive is a unique mix in a modern crime thriller - its getaway thrills are serve chilled - and that no good will come of a videogame offshoot.
Yes, it does offer one decent proper car chase among its escapades but much of Drive is spent waiting, tensely, for the inevitable to happen and when it does, the results tend to confound expectations.
So do much of the cast. Gosling's no-name loner walks a fine line - between silent lonely guy parody and inscrutable enigma. But walk it he does, complete with a toothpick in his mouth, a silk bomber jacket on his back, and leather driving gloves keeping his hands clean.
Mulligan also impresses as the melancholy Irene, the diner waitress with the ex-con husband, who tries to thaw Gosling's cold, cold heart.
But the real villain of the piece is Albert Brooks (Nemo's dad) cast against type as a bitter former movie producer now plying darker arts.
Drive doesn't lack for performance spark but he's the tiger in the tank.
Stars: 4/5
Cast: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Albert Brooks
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Rating: R18 (graphic violence and offensive language)
Running time: 100 mins
Verdict: Retro cool artful crime thriller
-TimeOut
