The Place Beyond The Pines

Through the LoveFilm Instant service, this is a story of two men, the crime that joins them, and the consequences for both them and their sons.

An unusual crime drama, this is three stories told one after the other. The first is about circus motorbike rider Luke Glanton (Ryan Gosling) who, on finding he has a son, takes up robbing banks in a misguided attempt to support the boy and his mother Romina (Eva Mendes). He is finally cornered by policeman Avery Cross (Bradley Cooper) and the second story is what happens to Cross afterwards when he discovers police corruption in the wake of the confrontation. The third story is about their sons who encounter each other fifteen years later and discover what happened.

It's quite a long film, which is hardly surprising given the content, and it does drag a little in places. Gosling does his best as the troubled Glanton, but he can only play one note and that's getting a bit tiresome now. Bradley Cooper does better as the principled, but ambitious, Cross, and the support is good, if somewhat muted. All-in-all a good movie, but requiring some patience, especially at the end.