Do you want people to like your film? I ask that a lot. Sometimes I’m pretty sure the answer is “no” more often than it should be. I ask this because some films indulge in grit and flawed persona with such exuberance it’s hard to believe the director actually said at any point, “yes, you’ll root for this guy.” Luke (Ryan Gosling, again with the Ryan Gosling) is a head-to-toe tattoed bad-dye-job stunt-cyclist carnie. They only show the stunt cycling part of his carnie routine, but you gotta believe any permanent hire to a nomadic carnival takes on multiple roles. His carnie pay keeps him in cigarettes and undershirts, which is good because he seems to have a three-pack-a-day habit of both.
One day, Romina (Eva Mendes) turns up again in his life and Luke soon learns that li’l Luke (“Jason”) exists. Luke strikes me as the kind of guy who stopped making decisions years ago because he was pretty lousy at it. Sure enough, Luke suddenly finds the call of fatherhood and quits the lucrative carnie circuit. Uh oh, there’s another man involved – a man (Mahershala Ali) who is a much better provider than Luke. It’s at this point where Luke needs to move on, but he doesn’t, somehow getting into his head that if he just rights his ship a little, then he, Romina and Jason will be a family. 
Turns out there aren’t a whole lot of openings for motorcycle stuntmen in the greater Synecdoche area at this time, so Luke holes up at The Place Beyond the Pines with a loser (Ben Mendelsohn) until he can get his act together by robbing banks. I refer you now back to my opening query.
About 45 minutes into Place, we lose Luke for good, never returning to him again. For the next segment, Bradley Cooper takes over the role of protagonist. He’s a flawed hero, too, but a little easier to root for as he’s on the right side of the law. Well, sort of. He means well, but his actions suggest one who is constantly in over his head. For one thing, he won’t play ball with fellow cops. We follow him around for 45 minutes, too. Then we go another route. Place saw fit to give us four (4!) separate protagonists, each with a new tale to tell. I know this is meant to be quirky and indie and artsy-fartsy, but it comes off as some sort of desperate salesman shtick: “have I got a deal for you? Have Ryan Gosling. What’s that? You’re not liking Ryan Gosling? Screw him, we got Bradley Cooper. No, we’re done with Gosling. His story is over. Here’s Bradley. You’ll love Bradley. Moving on. Don’t like Bradley? That’s Ok, too. Forget Bradley. Here’s something new…” The calamity of this haphazard strategy culminates in Avery, Jr. (Emory Cohen) taking the com after Avery Sr. (Cooper) relinquishes. Drug abusing, friend abusing, gold-chain-n-wife-beater clad A.J. is equally up to the task of being a rooting interest as Dick Cheney is likely to join Greenpeace. Luckily, his stint is short; we need to hear more about teen Jason (Dane DeHaaaaaan), A.J.’s “friend.”
The Place Beyond the Pines is the kind of Indie film snobs rave about with adjectives like “gritty,” “real” and “smart.” I found it all of these things, but I’d also add “tedious,” “pretentious” and “dreary.” Yes, I found the same film both real and pretentious. I liked it more than I didn’t, but this kind of overhyped critic’s film is precisely why I pay little attention to film festivals.
Meet Luke, seeker of multiple thrills
The market says he has limited skills
He just discovered that he’s a father
Time to trade one life for another
What’s that? You think this guy is a zero
Screw it; we’re switchin’ out the hero
Meet Avery, cop of very few years …
Rated R, 140 Minutes
D: Derek Cianfrance
W: Derek Cianfrance, Ben Coccio, Darius Marder
Genre: Sins of the father, visited and revisited
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: Drifters
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: The sinful father
