Tom Cruise and science fiction are a powerful combination. Although the opening weekend of 'Oblivion' didn't break any records big or small, it's a more than solid start for a non-franchise, non-sequel, non-reboot. That's a sad statement on the current state of Hollywood, but that's another topic for another day.
To watch 'The Place Beyond the Pines' is to observe characters making discoveries. Discoveries about their past, their environment, their heritage. When the revelations come they aren't met with gasps or dropped objects, but with an understanding, an acceptance that, yes, this is, indeed, the way things are.
While you'd swear with every bone in your body that this vast, rich, symbol-heavy tale was surely based on a thick doorstopper of a novel, the surprising fact remains that it is, actually, an original screenplay. It seems, though, a natural progression after the character portraiture of Derek Cianfrance's last film 'Blue Valentine.' This new one has the essence of 'Blue Valentine' but blown open far and wide.
A few weeks ago, we got our first look at 'The Place Beyond the Pines' with the arrival of the first trailer. Normally, trailers like those arrive after vague, mysterious teaser posters, but for whatever reason, the exact opposite has occurred here. If anything, this poster lets us know exactly how this movie is going to be marketed (the "OMG MOVIE STAR" approach).
A professional motorcycle rider turns to bank robberies to support his newborn son, but he crosses paths with a rookie police officer and their violent confrontation spirals into a tense generational feud.
'The Place Beyond the Pines' has quickly become one of our most anticipated films of 2013. Picked up by Focus Features at the Toronto International Film Festival over the weekend, it looks like we'll be seeing a theatrical release relatively soon. Until then, we've got the first footage from the film. Spoiler: Ryan Gosling eats some fruit.
