The Place Beyond the Pines

Overview

In Derek Cianfrance's The Place Beyond the Pines, Ryan Gosling plays Luke, a drifter who makes a living doing motorcycle stunts in a traveling carnival. When he discovers that he has an infant son, he decides he wants to be able to take care of the child. He meets an ex-convict who knows how to rob banks, and learns from him how to pull off heists. His actions cause his life to become intertwined with a police officer named Avery (Bradley Cooper), who chases after him during a robbery. The Place Beyond the Pines ...
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Overview

In Derek Cianfrance's The Place Beyond the Pines, Ryan Gosling plays Luke, a drifter who makes a living doing motorcycle stunts in a traveling carnival. When he discovers that he has an infant son, he decides he wants to be able to take care of the child. He meets an ex-convict who knows how to rob banks, and learns from him how to pull off heists. His actions cause his life to become intertwined with a police officer named Avery (Bradley Cooper), who chases after him during a robbery. The Place Beyond the Pines screened at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival.
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Editorial Reviews

All Movie Guide - Perry Seibert
Derek Cianfrance made a name for himself with his improvised marriage drama Blue Valentine, but he takes a very different approach with his follow-up to that breakthrough film. In The Place Beyond the Pines, he's crafted a sweeping three-act story with such skill that, for a good two thirds of it, viewers have the unique pleasure of not knowing what's coming next even though every step is completely logical. Ryan Gosling who was the male lead in Blue Valentine stars as Luke, a chain-smoking motorcycle stunt driver who works at a traveling carnival riding his bike inside a big steel ball with two other daredevils, whizzing around each other at life-threatening speeds. An old flame Eva Mendes reappears and tells him that he has a one-year-old son, triggering a desire to do right by his offspring. In response, Luke quits his job and resorts to less-than-legal endeavors. This choice brings him into contact with Avery Bradley Cooper, a rookie cop with a law degree whose ambitious father -- a former state judge -- knows how to play all the angles. Although their interaction is a brief one, it forever changes not just the lives of the two men, but their children's lives as well. There is much to admire in The Place Beyond the Pines, but the first thing viewers will respond to is Gosling, an actor who can simultaneously project masculinity and vulnerability better than anyone in his generation; there's a reason he's become both a sex symbol and the subject of a feminist Internet meme. Luke is covered with tattoos, rippling with muscles, and capable of great tenderness, but short on common sense, good judgment, and impulse control. Gosling not only can play all of that, but also comes off as a credibly gentle father whenever he holds his baby boy. It's yet another impressive performance from a remarkable young talent. Cianfrance's first-rate script, co-authored with Ben Coccio and Darius Marder, keeps you guessing even while making total narrative sense. Characters make bad decisions and there are repercussions for them, just not the ones we necessarily expect. In addition, during the middle segment in which Cooper's do-gooder cop comes face-to-face with corruption in his own department, the movie becomes an expert thriller alongside a moving drama examining the psyches of its two main characters. If only the third act had kept us guessing as effectively as the first two, Cianfrance would have had an all-time classic. But once it becomes apparent how this saga must end, we get ahead of the story for the first time, and it's a letdown because we've been so expertly misdirected for the initial two thirds of the picture. That said, a film this well-constructed, superbly acted, and thoughtfully humanistic is rare; it's the kind of movie many people say can't get made any more. It has the scope and depth of a novel, doesn't dumb itself down, and trusts the audience to have patience. With just two films together, Cianfrance and Gosling have all the makings of a superb long-term director/actor relationship.
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Product Details

  • Release Date: 8/6/2013
  • UPC: 025192182976
  • Original Release: 2012

    • Rating:

  • Source: Universal Studios
  • Format: DVD
  • Sales rank: 375

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits
Ryan Gosling Luke
Bradley Cooper Avery, Avery Cross
Eva Mendes Romina
Rose Byrne Jennifer
Ray Liotta Deluca
Ben Mendelsohn Robin
Dane DeHaan Jason
Emory Cohen AJ
Mahershalalhashbaz Ali Kofi
Gabe Fazio Scott
Bruce Greenwood Bill Killcullen
Harris Yulin Al Cross
Craig Van Hook Jack
Olga Merediz Malena
Anthony Angelo Pizza Jr. Baby Jason
John Facci Priest
Cynthia Pelletier-Sullivan Teller #1 - Bank #1
Mackenzie Trainor Teller #2 - Bank #1
Nicole Califano Teller #3 - Bank #1
Shannon Plumb Lady in Ice Cream Shop
Tracey Agustin Teller #1 - Bank #2
Ean Egas Teller #2 - Bank #2
Bob Dieterich Banker Outside Bank #2
Thomas Mattice Booking Officer
Adam Nowichi Arresting Officer
Mark Caruso Court Lawyer
G. Douglas Griset Judge #1
Vanessa Thorpe Court Officer
Gail Martino Teller - Bank #3
Brian Smyj Officer Jefferson
Dorothy Rutherford Mother at Home
Paul Steele Officer at Shootout Scene
Travis Jackson Campbell Baby AJ
Trevor Jackson Campbell Baby AJ
Jan Libertucci Nurse
Robert Clohessy Chief Weirzbowski
Subrina Dhammi Reporter #1
Heather Chestnut Jennifer's Mother
Greta Seacat Cory Gilbeau
Luca Pierucci Doc Crow
Jessica Layton Reporter #2
James J. Gleason Funeral Director
Patrick Husted Preacher
Joe McCarthy Campaign Manager
Jefrey Pollock Campaign Advisor
Lynette Howell Political Media Advisor
Sarah Curcio Guidance Counselor
Ephraim Benton Benny
Mark McCracken Drug Busting Cop #1
Adriel Linyear Drug Busting Cop #2
Kevin Green Interrogating Cop
Jennifer Sober Public Defender
Melissa Mills Judge #2
Alex Pulling Alex
Dante Shafer Dante
Kayla Smalls Vanessa
Frank Falvo Pharmacy Clerk
Leah Bliven Leah
Whitney Hudson Whitney
Breanna Dolen Breanna
Hugh T. Farley State Senator
Michael Cullen Mr. Anthony
Technical Credits
Derek Cianfrance Director, Original Story, Screenwriter
Mike Ahern Art Director
Erin Benach Costumes/Costume Designer
Matt Berenson Executive Producer
Sean Bobbitt Cinematographer
Damian Canelos Sound Mixer
Ben Coccio Original Story, Screenwriter
Mariela Comitini Asst. Director
Carrie Fix Co-producer
Dan Flosdorf Sound/Sound Designer
Jimmy Helton Editor
Gabe Hilfer Musical Direction/Supervision
Lynette Howell Producer
Drew Jiritano Jr. Special Effects
Sidney Kimmel Producer
Darius Marder Screenwriter
Katie McNeill Associate Producer
Richard O'Brien Moran Special Effects
Mike Myers Special Effects
Alex Orlovsky Producer
Ron Patane Editor
Jamie Patricof Producer
Mike Patton Score Composer
Crystal Powell Associate Producer
Jim Tauber Executive Producer
Cindy Tolan Casting
Bruce Toll Executive Producer
Inbal Weinberg Production Designer
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