The Place Beyond the Pines 4K 2012 Ultra HD 2160p

Story Movie

Motorcycle stuntman Luke Glanton tours from one province to another, showing his stunt skills and earning a living. At the end of one of his performances he meets his ex-girlfriend Romina and soon learns that she has a one-year-old son, Jason, with him. Determined to provide for his son he quits his job as a stuntman, but Romina is against Luke being in her son's life as she herself is involved in a relationship with Kofi. Nevertheless, Luke stays in town and takes a job with Robin, a mechanic, but soon realizes that the money he earns is not enough to provide for his family. Robin suggests that he rob a bank...

Review 4K Movie

“The Place Beyond the Pines” is an epic odyssey carved out of the homogeneous canvas of “Blue Valentine,” Derek Cianfrance's previous film, but expanded thematically into a story spanning more than fifteen years about a sinful legacy that took place in a small town in New York State.

The film consists of three chapters. In the first, we are introduced to Luke (Ryan Gosling), a fairground stuntman who performs his stunts on a motorcycle. After meeting Romina (Eva Mendes), with whom he had a brief affair, he learns that he has become a father. Stunned by this discovery and wanting to do the right thing, Luke decides to give up his life on the fairgrounds for the sake of his son, despite the fact that there is another man in Romina's life. Desperate to prove that he can support his child and his mother, Luke decides to rob banks, using his skills as a professional motorcycle racer.

In the second segment of the film, a fatal clash occurs between the newly minted gangster and the ambitious police officer Avery (Bradley Cooper), who takes over the narrative and develops a new storyline about moral choices and an unhappy marriage. In the final act, the two teenagers become close friends, unaware of their shared connection to a destructive force from the past. Will the long-buried mine of mistakes explode?

The innovative plot structure proposed by Sienfrans is comparable to the cult trilogy The Godfather. Yes, in such a comparison, the film is not in an advantageous position, but with his work, the rare director manages to hook the viewer almost instantly, and at the same time delay pulling them out. In parallel with the plot experiments, the director shifts gears throughout the film's three acts, starting briskly as a tense crime drama, the film begins to slow down when Iver takes the initiative and slows down even more when the narrative shifts to the relationship between two teenagers, but picks up speed again towards the end of the film.

The film's unusual structure with its changing narrative pace works perfectly, creating a tragic epic spanning several generations, slowly leading to the idea that any wrong decision can have dire consequences that stretch out over time. The profound beauty of the mournful saga that unfolds towards the end of the film leaves the viewer emotionally drained by the world of Cienfranc, where only cruel universal truths exist and there is no place for truly positive or negative characters. On the other hand, the trilogy, in fact, struggles to hold together in a comprehensive saga loaded with allegories for nearly two and a half hours. Considering that the film's potential far exceeds its final time frame, such overloads are depressing.

Ryan Gosling somewhat repeats his role as a quiet stuntman involved in the criminal world. This is a clever creative provocation! Be aware that, with the exception of the actor chosen for the role of Luke, a character prone to speed and crime, any comparisons with Drive end there and should be forgotten. Gosling adds the necessary depth to his character, taking on the role of the film's driving force, but the importance of Bradley Cooper and Eva Mendes' contributions is also undeniable, although the latter is given less screen time than many other interesting actors, such as Ray Liotta, Bruce Greenwood, and Ben Mendelsohn. The young actors, Dane DeHaan and Emory Cohen, also performed well, definitely adding dynamism to the film. Looking at the high level of acting, Rose Byrne, whose participation in the film is easy to overlook, really looks bad.

Derek Cianfrance's emotional reflections on the direct and indirect connections between the fates of generations, the complexity of choice, and the origins of violence are presented in the form of a visual odyssey, The Place Beyond the Pines, an epic in scope that incorporates elements of crime drama with Shakespearean passion and deeply emotional male melodrama.