The Place Beyond The Pines TIFF 2012 Review

Posted 12 years ago by myetvmedia

The Place Beyond the Pines ” is a great film about fathers and sons, and the impact parenting has on a child. This is Derek Cianfrance’s third feature and his second outing with Ryan GoslingCianfrance tells a saga about a carny motorcycle stunt driver, ‘Handsome’ Luke (Ryan Gosling), Avery (Bradley Cooper) a rookie police officer and the fated collision course of their lives.

The film kicks off with Luke discovering a fling in the same town a year ago has left him with a child. Reunited with Romina (Eva MendesLuke is taken a back that she has held this secret to herself for so long. Shocked, but with a kind heart, Luke aims to support and raise his new found son, but there are two problems: Romina has a new boyfriend to raise the child with and Luke is broke. Luke will do whatever it takes to take care of his new family, so he turns to robbing banks to do it.

Photo courtesy of TIFF

There are three acts in this film and watching the story unfold is really exciting. We see that the choices made by these fathers have directly impacted their children’s personalities, decisions and angst. This picture is also a story about karma and discovery and we see things come full circle in the film’s tense conclusion.

While not as memorable as “Blue Valentine ”, “The Place Beyond the Pines” is a must see at TIFF. Gosling and Cooper reveal two memorable and bold characters and Cianfrance’s direction really does wonders with them. We are fortunate that Cianfrance aims to tell the complete story of their lives and the aftermath of it all not just a slice of it.

-Chris Murphy

  

Official Trailer

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