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Full productions notes follow which detail how the REO Speedwagon song ‘I Can’t Fight This Feeling Anymore’ played a pivotal role in the formation for Nicolas Winding Refn’s latest film, Drive. These production notes which offer a rare glimpse into the making of the film also include quotes from Nicolas Winding Refn, Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Christina Hendricks, Ron Perlman, Newton Thomas Sigel, Bryan Cranston, Oscar Isaac, Hossein Amini, David Lancaster, Marc E. Platt and Adam Siegel. Drive will have its World Premiere this month in the official competition section of the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.

Museum of Cinema Interviews with Nicolas Winding Refn:
::: Bronson
::: Valhalla Rising
 
 
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DRIVE PRODUCTION NOTES

THE STORY

Driver (RYAN GOSLING) is a stunt driver by day and a getaway driver by night. Doesn’t matter what job he does, Driver is most comfortable behind the wheel of a car.

Shannon (BRYAN CRANSTON) is part mentor, part manager for Driver. Since he knows what a great talent Driver is behind the wheel, he either peddles him to film and television directors in the entertainment business or thieves who need an accomplished getaway driver, taking a cut for his own pockets.

Always looking to make a buck, Shannon’s current plan is funding a stock car that Driver can race on the professional circuit. Since Bernie Rose (ALBERT BROOKS) is the wealthiest guy he knows, even if the sources of his money are questionable, Shannon proposes he be their investor. After seeing Driver in action at the speedway, Bernie Rose insists Nino (RON PERLMAN) partners with them as well.

Primarily a loner and ambivalent about the deals Shannon makes for him, Driver’s world changes the day he shares an elevator ride at his apartment building with Irene (CAREY MULLIGAN). When he sees her again at the grocery store with her young son, Benicio (KADEN LEOS), he is transfixed, and willingly offers help when they are stranded in the parking lot because Irene’s car won’t start. Soon Driver settles into a routine of driving Irene to her waitress job and watching Benicio, entangled in their lives while her car is fixed.

This interlude in Driver’s life abruptly stops when Standard (OSCAR ISAAC), Irene’s husband, is let out early from prison for good behavior. Even though nothing has happened between Driver and Irene, Standard is threatened by another man’s presence in his family’s life. Driver backs off, respectful of Irene’s desire to keep her family together, but when he finds Standard bloodied and lying in the garage with a scared Benicio standing next to his father, Driver is embroiled even further in Irene’s life. Then trouble begins…

THE INSPIRATION

“DRIVE” is based on the novel written by James Sallis of the same name. It was the catalyst that got the engines roaring for producers Marc E. Platt and Adam Siegel of Marc Platt Productions to adapt the small book into a feature film.

Producer Adam Siegel explains, “Part of my day-to-day job is looking for movies, and one of the things you do is read Publisher’s Weekly. I read a small review that said there was a novel about a getaway driver who didn’t have a name. I was immediately intrigued and called the agent and read the book that night.”

He continues, “I was very excited. It felt like the kind of character you rarely see anymore-he was a man with a purpose; he was very good at one thing and made no apologies for it.”

Veteran producer Marc E. Platt, who has shepherded such blockbusters as “Legally Blonde” and “Wanted” into theaters, agrees, “I was instantly taken with the main character, ‘Driver.’ He was an enigmatic, reserved individual who lived by a very distinctive code.”

He smiles, “It reminded me of some of my heroes of the past, some of the movie characters as a kid I would look up to, characters played by Steve McQueen and Clint Eastwood. Men who said little, but carried a big stick and spoke with their actions.”

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THE ADAPTATION

Hossein Amini (referred to as Hoss by filmmakers), Academy Award® Nominated for his adaptation of Henry James’ “The Wings Of A Dove,” landed the job of turning the novel into a screenplay.

Screenwriter Amini remembers, “It was such a rare book to get from a studio because it was very short, very dark– it was almost more like a poem.”

He continues, “What I loved is that the novelist James Sallis, had these extraordinary characters with a very simple plot running through it; this tiny subplot of a getaway driver getting involved in a bank robbery that goes wrong and then has the mafia coming after him.”

However, adapting the seemingly short story into a viable screenplay wasn’t all that easy.

Screenwriter Amini reveals, “The biggest challenge was that there wasn’t a linear story in the book as such. It was a lot of flashbacks and jumped around. Structurally, that makes for an interesting book, but it’s a very tricky structure for a mainstream movie.”

Producer Siegel agrees, “The first big challenge adapting this particular novella to the screenplay was to find the through line and put it in order and see if the story would hold water once it was in order.”

Screenwriter Amini further considers, “The whole notion of the ‘heist gone wrong,’ you’ve seen it in lots of movies, but what was interesting about it in the book was how it affects the different characters. The heist doesn’t just affect Driver; it has these huge repercussions on everyone.”

As to keeping the spirit of the book alive in the screenplay adaptation, Producer Platt offers, “I was very taken with this little crime story that James Sallis wrote. I felt that the way the world was presented in the book demanded that its true grit be retained in the script.”

He elaborates, “The grit comes from seeing the world from the point of view of Driver in the car. It’s those elements that I felt were critical to retain to make this film a very unique cinematic experience.”

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RYAN GOSLING CLIMBS ABOARD

It was Producer Marc E. Platt who has worked with many of the top talent in Hollywood who first reached out to Academy Award® Nominee Ryan Gosling.

Producer Platt explains, “I have this list that I’ve created of very talented individuals whose work inspire me-writers, directors, actors whom I have to work with before I go onto another career or do something else with my life. Near the top of that list was Ryan Gosling.”

He continues, “I was determined to find a project that would speak to him. ‘Drive‘ was the first script that I ever sent to him. I think it might have been only forty-eight hours before I heard back that he wanted to come sit down with me which brought me great joy.”

As for Ryan Gosling, Academy Award® nominated for his role in “Half-Nelson” and currently receiving rave reviews as well as a Golden Globe® nomination for his performance in “Blue Valentine,” he reveals, “I always wanted to make a sort of action movie, but a lot of action movies these days are more on action and a little less character. I liked this screenplay because it had a very strong character at the center and there was a very strong love story as well.”

With Gosling in the lead role, Producer Pritzker praises, “Ryan has a real quiet burn to him. He’s obviously great to look at, but he’s also an unbelievably accomplished actor. I think the thing that’s exciting about him taking this role is that it’s so different from anything he’s been in. His character grabs us, and takes us on an emotionally charged and exhilarating ride.”

Producer Siegel adds, “Ryan Gosling brought the role of ‘Driver’ to life. It was a two-dimensional idea on a piece of paper until Ryan came along. He brings a sense of justice, a sense of danger to the character.”

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NICOLAS WINDING REFN JOINS NEXT

Ryan Gosling says, “I watched a lot of films and a lot of different filmmakers’ work-new filmmakers, old filmmakers. When I saw Nicolas’ films, there was no question to me that Nicolas had to make this movie.”

Gosling continues, “It seemed like a long shot because it didn’t seem at all like the films that he had done, but that’s what I liked so much about his work is that every film is different. ‘Valhalla Rising‘ is wildly different from ‘Bronson‘, and each ‘Pusher‘ film is different from the next and so I thought it might interest him because it’s so different from everything he’s done.”

As for Director Nicolas Winding Refn’s reaction to the first screenplay for “Drive,” he offers, “It wasn’t so much the story that intrigued me; it was more the concept and idea that there was a man who had split personalities, by being a stuntman by day and a getaway driver by night. That was very interesting to me.”

Regarding their first meeting, Director Refn remembers, “Our representatives set up a dinner between us in Los Angeles. I sat with Ryan for about two hours.” Refn continued, “It was almost like the strangest date you would ever have because we kind of connected but kept moving onto other areas of conversation, not really talking about this movie.”

Gosling corroborates, “We didn’t talk about the film very much at all; we just talked about movies in general.”

Director Refn continues, “I asked Ryan to drive me home because I was so tired, and then there was this very awkward silence in the car when we really didn’t know what to say to each other.”

Gosling recalls, “As I was driving Nicolas home, that song, ‘I Can’t Fight This Feeling Anymore’ by REO Speedwagon came on the radio and I turned it up because we weren’t talking. He started singing at the top of his lungs.”

Director Refn grins, “When that song came on the radio, for some reason it gave me some kind of understanding of what this movie could be. Hearing that song, I screamed in Ryan’s face, very loudly, ‘I know what this is!’ and I turned up the music, singing along to the song, drumming to the beat.”

He pauses, “I’m sure Ryan was a bit like, ‘how can I get this guy out of my car?’”

Director Refn continues, “I said to Ryan that this movie, ‘Drive,’ is about a man who drives around listening to pop songs at night because that’s his emotional relief.”

Smiling, Gosling recollects, “I knew in that moment that Nicolas was the right filmmaker for the film!”

Director Refn agrees, “That moment basically started our collaboration in figuring out what kind of film we wanted to make.”

As for the teaming of Ryan Gosling and Director Nicolas Winding Refn, Producer Platt considers, “Nicolas’ sensibility matched Ryan’s perfectly.”

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THE A-LIST CAST

With the combination of Hossein Amini’s screenplay, Ryan Gosling in the lead role and Nicolas Winding Refn taking the helm, the cast came together quickly. Academy Award® nominated Carey Mulligan, Emmy and Golden Globe® Winner Bryan Cranston, Academy Award® Nominee Albert Brooks, Oscar Isaac, Golden Globe® Winner Ron Perlman and Emmy® Nominee Christina Hendricks came aboard.

Producer Adam Siegel offers, “With the terrific script and Nicolas Winding Refn being such a dynamic filmmaker, I think everyone wanted the opportunity to work at a high level to create real characters.”

Carey Mulligan, who last year was nominated by the Academy® as ‘Best Supporting Actress’ for her role in “An Education,” lobbied for the part of ‘Irene.’

She recalls, “After seeing ‘Bronson,’ I sent an email to my agent that I wanted to work with someone like Nicolas Winding Refn, not knowing that this project was about to happen. When I got the script three weeks later, I fell in love with the story and basically campaigned to get the job.”

In the novel, ‘Irene’ is a Latina. Director Refn confirms, “Originally I was looking for a Latina actress. I met a lot of great actresses-famous and not famous-but there was just always something wrong.”

He continues, “I hadn’t seen Carey’s films, but the minute she walked in the door, I knew we had our ‘Irene.’ It just cemented the love story in a much more interesting way. It made it more of a ‘Romeo & Juliet‘ kind of love story without the politics that would in this day and age be brought into it if you had different nationalities or different religions.”

When it came to Bryan Cranston, three-time Emmy® Winner for his role in AMC’s “Breaking Bad,” he actually was the first actor Director Refn reached out to when they were looking for ‘Shannon.’

Director Refn offers, “After we closed the financing, it was like ‘okay, who would I like in this movie besides Ryan?’ and Bryan was someone that I went for like a hawk. Bryan is very much the kind of actor where it’’s not just voice; it’s everything that comes with him.”

Bryan Cranston smiles, “The script for Drive is what really drove me to do this film. It was compelling and it was truly a character that I could dive into and become. Plus, Ryan was starring in it, and I wanted to work with Nicolas.”

Albert Brooks as the villain ‘Bernie Rose’ was another idea Director Refn threw out to everyone. Ryan Gosling was in agreement.

Gosling recalls, “When Nic and I were talking about ‘Bernie Rose,’ we kept saying, ‘we’ve got to find someone like Albert Brooks.’ We just figured Albert Brooks would never do the movie. I thought he was only in movies that he writes and directs, and I also didn’t think he would want to play a character that’s so violent, so dark.”

As for that initial meeting with Albert Brooks, Director Refn offers, “When Albert came to my house, he was aggressive in that volcano-ish way where you have this sense that he’s about to snap at any moment. It was also very intriguing to me that he never had done a part like this.”

On the page the character of ‘Standard’ is a Mexican gang member who is married to ‘Irene’. Oscar Isaac, who played ‘Prince John’ in Ridley Scott’s “Robin Hood,” turned the archetypal role into something far more.

Isaac reveals, “The part was originally written as this thug, a career criminal. That didn’t really appeal to me. As soon as I sat down with Nicolas, he explained this universe and world of the story, so we made the character into someone interested in owning a restaurant, someone who made some wrong decisions in his life, ending up in a bad place. By making ‘Standard’ more specific and more interesting, we found that it made the story that more compelling.”

Christina Hendricks, who has a huge fan base thanks to her work on the Emmy® award-winning “Mad Men,” came in for the small, but crucial role of ‘Blanche.’

She remembers, “I thought it was a fantastic script and since I knew I would meet Nicolas, I watched ‘Bronson.’ I was so impressed with that film; I thought it was amazing the way he framed each and every shot, everything looked like a painting and you could just tell it was meticulous, incredibly artistic and smart. I was excited to meet him and was willing to do anything just to work with him!”

As for his take on Christina Hendricks, Director Refn admits, “When Christina came in, she just had this likeability about her so that the minute we met, I just knew she was going to be ‘Blanche.’”

Another key villain, the part of ‘Nino,’ found itself in the hands of Ron Perlman, loved by audiences for the myriad of characters he has created over the years, including his turn in the “Hellboy” movies and F/X’s recent television series, “Sons Of Anarchy.”

When he was asked to consider the role of ‘Nino,’ Perlman offers, “Almost everybody had been brought onboard before I joined, and it was just a phenomenal company of performers. I’d seen ‘Bronson‘ and saw that Nicolas was an amazingly smart, original, very stylish filmmaker. That’s what did it-and the material!”

Director Refn remembers, “The character of ‘Nino’ was originally not particularly interesting, so I asked Ron why he wanted to be in my movie when he’s done so many great films. When Ron said, ‘I always wanted to play a Jewish man who wants to be an Italian gangster,’ and I asked why, and he said, ‘because that’s what I am– a Jewish boy from New York,’ well, that automatically cemented it for me.”

As for his remarkable cast, Director Refn contends, “It was a very easy process casting this movie because there were a lot of times when we knew it wasn’t going to work and a few times when you knew it would. That’s what we went for.”

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DRIVER

The story revolves around ‘Driver’ with Ryan Gosling in that role. All the characters of the movie at some point interact with him.

Producer Platt lauds, “The kind of utter commitment that Ryan brings when he creates a character, complete truth and honesty, has been a great pleasure to watch develop.”

Carey Mulligan maintains, “Ryan’s got this sort of lone cowboy thing and the minute the camera turns on, he’s like this knight.”

Bryan Cranston says, “For a kid who is so young, Ryan has a depth and a gravitas to him, a groundedness, that is not only necessary for the character but for the working conditions, too.”

He adds, “He’s really a great guy to work with; he’s gracious, he’s there with you, he likes to laugh, goof around, have fun and get the work done. You go home thinking ‘that was nice, that was good.’”

Ron Perlman praises, “Ryan’s a perfect choice for this character who’s more mysterious and says less than he says more. He’s the quintessential rugged American image of the loner, the drifter, who doesn’t really care if he has any friends.”

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VISUAL STYLE

All of Director Refn’s films have a distinct visual style and one of his signature looks is the use of the wide angle lens of the camera.

For this movie, Newton Thomas Sigel, ASC, a long time collaborator with Director Bryan Singer as well as responsible for filming the critically acclaimed, “Frankie and Alice,” was hired to complement Director Refn’s vision.

Cinematographer Sigel offers, “I had seen Nicolas’ work and knew already there was a very strong point of view and a perspective that he was going to bring to the project. We tried to find a way to bring all of those elements that made him the sort of unique filmmaker that he is, and yet go to the next step in his evolution.”

He continues, “We basically kept the wide angle feeling with a lot of depth and a lot of background to it, and yet, took it to the next level where you’re adapting to the wide variety of locations and situations while telling stories that involve speed.”

Cinematographer Sigel, ASC, admits, “One of the big challenges is that even though this movie is called ‘Drive‘ about a guy who loves to drive, it’s not really a car chase movie. How do you do those car chases in a way that’s fresh and new and yet also not contradictory to the whole sort of more atmospheric tone Nicolas set for the movie?”

When it came to shooting the car chase sequences, Cinematographer Sigel, ASC & his team faced some bigger challenges. He offers, “The one thing that Nicolas didn’t want was handheld cameras.”

The biscuit rig, developed for the movie “Seabiscuit,” proved to be ideal for filming many of the car sequences. Cinematographer Sigel, ASC, explains, “We put the car on it, which then allowed Ryan to be in the car concentrating on his acting as the cameras rolled. Meanwhile, there’s a precision driver steering the car but it appears as if Ryan is really driving the car.”

With filming done, Cinematographer Sigel, ASC says, “The collaboration between Nicolas and I has been great. It was better than I could have dreamed of. He has a very clear vision which is what I respect in a director. He’s very open to suggestion and wants ideas, then takes what he likes and leaves behind what he doesn’t. I’ve had a lot of input, but I think he’s stayed true to his vision of filmmaking in general and specifically for this film.”

Executive Producer David Lancaster says about the look that Sigel has created for the film, “Rich, haunting, deep images of an LA that we don’t often see. From the little seen back streets of downtown LA to the dry arid outposts on the peaks of the desert landscape surrounding it, Siegel has re-imagined an LA all the way down to the rocky cliffs by the sea.”

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Source:
Official production notes from the 2011 Cannes World Premiere of the film.

Related:
::: Film Archive Listing – Museum of Cinema
::: IMDb Listing
 
 

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