The best parts of the script of this late 70s action-thriller are the car chases when nobody speaks, and when the script designates what Los Angeles Street the car driven by Ryan O'Neal will be speeding down, and when the cop cars turn over or crash. It's obvious that this film was written and directed for people who enjoy watching the cops lose, and lose they d9 mightily as professional speed driver O'Neal operates the escape vehicle that gets criminals away from the scene of the crime. Not only do cop cars crash or turn over, parts of the vehicles fly off of all of the cars driving, and all O'Neill has to do is operate the machinery in an automobile demolition lot to get rid of the evidence.
Some decent actors really don't get a chance to do much acting, although Bruce Dern (nominated for an Oscar that year for "Coming Home") does get the most opportunity. Isabelle Adjani, nominated for an Oscar just a few years before, is merely window-dressing as the player, credited as such as the majority of the characters do not have names, just descriptions. The film itself is certainly watchable but not really all that memorable outside of the chase sequences, rather violent and outside of Dern as the detective not at all character driven. The streets of downtown Los Angeles get a lot of wear and tear as these prop cop cars and the escape vehicles aggressively fly over them obviously in the middle of a pre-dawn Sunday. Fun for a while, but after a bit it gets completely tedious.
Plot summary
"The Driver" is a specialist in a rare business: he drives getaway cars in robberies. His exceptional talent prevented him from being caught yet. After another successful flight from the police, a self-assured detective makes it his primary goal to catch the Driver. He promises remission of punishment to a gang if they help to convict him in a set-up robbery. The Driver seeks help from "The Player" (Isabelle) to mislead the detective.—Tom Zoerner
February 17, 2023 at 10:57 PM
Tech specs
720p.BLU 1080p.BLU 2160p.WEBMovie Reviews
When I lose, I just go broke. When you lose, you go to jail.
Walter Hill's superbly austere, arresting & exciting existential noir car chase crime thriller gem
Walter Hill's second directorial effort after his terrific debut feature "Hard Times" may very well be one of his best films ever, a tense, steely, tersely plotted and resolutely tough-minded crime thriller done in vintage gritty, amoral, staunchly sinewy and unsentimental existential noir style. The usually wanting Ryan O'Neal makes for a surprisingly sturdy and credible protagonist as the titular ace getaway driver, a laconic, audacious, always cool and in control crackerjack wheelman par excellence who's doggedly pursued by a brutish, browbeating, obsessively wacko and determined detective (the ever-manic Bruce Dern in first-rate fruitcake form). Dern tries to collar O'Neal in an elaborate bank robbery set-up, but seriously underestimates O'Neal's razor-sharp cunning and resourcefulness.
Hill's tightly wound direction expertly pumps up the brooding, cold-as-ice atmosphere and makes every minute count: both story and characterizations are cut to the bone, the pace remains taut and fleet throughout, the spare, hard-edged, occasionally profane dialogue mines a fine line in hard-boiled reticence, the nervy cat-and-mouse game between Dern and O'Neal vividly reveals the rigid hierarchy which exists in both cop and criminal subcultures alike, and the justifiably lauded ultra-kinetic, heart-pounding, metal-mangling car chase sequences contain a raw, savage, lump-in-your-throat harrowing power that's undeniably arresting and exciting. Phillip Lathrop's shadowy cinematography and Michael Small's bluesy score add substantially to the overall hard-hitting no-nonsense tone. Dern and O'Neal are fantastic in the lead roles, with able supporting turns by Matt Clark as Dern's whiny, talkative, but more level-headed fussbudget new partner, the lovely Isabelle Adjani as a sweet young thing who gets caught up in the fracas, Ronee Blakely as a cagey underworld connection, and the ubiquitous Bob Minor as a stick-up man. Lean, mean and thoroughly gripping, with no sappy pathos or lame smartalecky humor to detract from the firmly rough-edged goings-on, this authentic no-fooling article truly deserves its significant cult status.
Characters Without Name And Certainly Among The Greatest Car-Chase Movies
In Los Angeles, a mysterious driver (Ryan O'Neal) is a sad man of few words that drives getaway car in robberies. One day, he participates of a heist of a casino and a player (Isabelle Adjani) is the main witness. However, she tells to the detective (Bruce Dern) in charge of the investigation that the suspect is not the driver of the getaway car.
The detective becomes obsessed to arrest the driver and he seeks out a gang that has robbed a supermarket and promises to "forgive" their heist if they help him to arrest the driver in a bank robbery. But the player helps the driver to exchange the dirty money.
I have recently seen "Drive" and a friend of mine warned that the 2011 film would be a remake of "The Driver". I have just seen this good thriller by Walter Hill and I have realized that they have the same storyline.
"The Driver" has characters without name and is certainly among the greatest car-chase movies. Ryan O'Neal has one of his best roles and Isabelle Adjani is extremely beautiful. The conclusion has an open end with the unknown destiny of the money. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "Caçador de Morte" ("Hunter of Death")
96k is a decent bitrate for mono, but this mono soundtrack is in the left side of stereo one.
the movie was made with only 1.0 channel sound. stop commenting on the audio channels if you havent made any search before
no sound
holy sbit
Audio can be heard only on the left channel. This problem is present in both 720p and 1080p versions.
no audio
Thanx a lot!!