"If you ride like lightning, you're going to crash like thunder." 

The Place Beyond the Pines is one of my most anticipated films of the year. It's directed by Derek Cianfrance, who also directed the gut- wrenchingly visceral Blue Valentine. Pines also stars Ryan Gosling, one of my favorite actors and Bradley Cooper, coming off a career defining (and Oscar nominated) performance in Silver Linings Playbook. 

Pines is structurally unlike most films. This might put off some people who are used to more linear storytelling, but I really loved how the story unfolded. For those that don't know, Pines is broken up into 3 acts. The first act follows Luke, played by Ryan Gosling, who drives a motorcycle in a traveling carnival. The second act deals with Avery, played by Cooper, who's a police officer that crosses paths with Luke and ends up getting caught up in a world of crooked cops. The third act transports us 15 years in the future and revolves around the two sons of Luke and Avery. 

While I enjoyed the film as a whole, it's the first act that really shines. I could have watched a full length film just about the first act. Gosling's character is so mesmerizing, you can't take your eyes off of him. Luke is a legend. As he slowly makes his way through the crowded carnival grounds, time seems to stop. Everybody is there to see him. As he enters the spherical metal cage and begins to ride his motorcycle in circles with two other riders at break-neck speeds, he seems almost mythical. Like a James Dean or a Kurt Cobain, Luke seems like one of those rare souls that is destined to walk this Earth for only a short time. There's no old man in a rocking chair in their future. Their star is too bright, their energy too hard to contain. 

With a cigarette dangling precariously from his lips and tattoos scattered throughout his body, including one on his face, Gosling resembles a more dangerous James Dean. A real rebel without a cause, except this rebel actually has a cause and it's to support his newborn son. A son that he only just recently realized he had. In order to do this, Luke quits the carnival and starts robbing banks. 

This is just one of the themes that Pines touches upon - fathers and sons. Pines also asks the question of whether or not a son must pay for the sins of the father. Are we doomed to repeat the errors of our father regardless of whether or not the aforementioned father is even present in our lives? Is our future already predetermined by our genes, or can they truly be changed by our actions? 

Pines also shows how lives can be intertwined and how the future of individuals can be affected by the choices we make. 

The second act of the film focuses on Cooper's character. This part of the film can't help but come down from the kinetic high that was the first act. Cooper seems subdued especially coming off of his powerhouse performance in Silver Lining Playbook. That being said, it makes sense that Avery is more quiet and reserved. He's caught in the middle and haunted by his decisions. 

The second act is a really important part of the film and deals with greed, guilt and corruption. It also helps set up the rest of the film and in doing so, the lives of the two sons of the main characters. 

The third act may seem out of place with the rest of the film, but it's carried by two great performance by two actors who aren't yet household names. First is Luke's son Jason, played by Dane DeHaan (Chronicle), a true star on the rise. Jason is a quiet outcast who, on the surface, doesn't seem to have the magnetic gravitational pull of his father. Second is Avery's son AJ, played by Emory Cohen. AJ is a wannabe thug that desperately wants to distance himself from his father's squeaky clean image. Without giving too much away, I will say that both characters don't turn out like you would expect. 

A lot of people are complaining that the film is too long (like this review), but it never felt like that to me. I thought the pacing was very good and I never felt there were wasted scenes. Every scene moved the story forward. Some might also take issue with the way the stories weave together, but I thought it felt natural. I can also say that Pines has a poignant and satisfying ending. 

The Place Beyond the Pines is a character study piece that has a very realistic feel. It's one of the things I love about Cianfrance's filmmaking. It feels natural and genuine, like a slice of life. It's Once Upon a Time in America for the 20th century.