The Place Beyond the Pines 4K 2012 Ultra HD 2160p

Motorcycle stuntman Luke Glanton tours from province to province, showing off his stunt skills and earning a living. After one of his performances, he meets his ex-girlfriend Romina and soon learns that she has a one-year-old son, Jason, from him. Deciding to provide for his son, he quits his job as a stuntman, but Romina is against Luke being in her son's life because she is involved in a relationship with Kofi. Nevertheless, Luke stays in town and gets a job with mechanic Robin, but soon realizes that the money he earns is not enough to support his family. Robin suggests that he rob a bank... One day, a corrupt police officer stands in his way. Their clash escalates into a violent confrontation that is destined to drag on for decades.

User Review

I had heard about this film as one of Ryan Gosling's major roles. That's why I started watching it. Verdict: the film is good and interesting, but it leaves a very mixed impression. This is because each of its components is both a plus and a minus, just like the characters in the film, who cannot be described as either unambiguously positive or unambiguously negative: they balance on the edge, leaning first one way and then the other. Nevertheless, it is easy to find someone to sympathize with, and that is Luke, played by Ryan Gosling. The entire film balances on his semantic pair with Avery (Bradley Cooper).

The film has a stellar cast. Gosling is wonderful in his role. A remarkable character who is a pleasure to watch. Bradley Cooper gave an unexpectedly stunning performance. Eva Mendes, Ben Mendelsohn, and Ray Liotta are good in their roles. Dane DeHaan and Emory Cohen are not bad. Mahershala Ali is off the mark, serving as mere furniture.

The main question I want to discuss is the structure and plot of the film. It's surprising that at the end of the first third of the film, they seem to show the ending, but there's still an hour and a half of the film left! Later on, it becomes clear that the film is divided into three separate parts. Each has its own story, its own main character, and its own genre. The stories are connected by the plot: one does not simply influence the other, but gives rise to it. At the same time, each subsequent part “destroys” the previous one, as if annulling its story (the essence of the second part replaces the essence of the first part, and the essence of the third part replaces the essence of the second). Therefore, when watching, the general essence is not captured (it seems to be missing: there is no common thread, at least a dotted one, running through the entire film).

On the one hand, this is an interesting and unusual move, which distinguishes the film from others, but on the other hand, it looks strange: there is no complete picture. The overall idea, the concept, is unclear. What is the main point here? Whose story is it? What is it about? It looks like a three-part miniseries. Or like three separate stories, three separate films. There is no coherent film, no story with a specific message. Apparently, the point is to show the intertwining of destinies, a kind of kaleidoscope, and that sooner or later everyone has to make difficult decisions, and all decisions have consequences. If so, it didn't come across very convincingly: all three parts are too different, they have such different vibes and settings that it's impossible to call them a single whole. At the same time, while the second part is somewhat surprising due to the ending of the first part, the third part becomes predictable from the very first frames. In addition, much of the script seems illogical and far-fetched.

The ending is quite poetic. But it's hard to call it a happy ending. Looking at Jason (Dane DeHaan) walking away into the sunset, you can be glad that the guy finally learned the truth, changed his mind at the last moment, and didn't do something irreparable. But the way he supposedly found himself is unconvincing: the son thoughtlessly takes on his father's image, and there are fears that he will repeat his fate.

And the cherry on top: the film's title does not reflect the plot and makes no sense in the context of the film. Although it could have been played out beautifully, with some kind of metaphor.

Info Video

Codec: HEVC / H.265 (79.5 Mb/s)
Resolution: 4K (2160p)
HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1

Info Audio

#English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
#Czech: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1

Info Subtitles