At the time of its release in 2011, *Drive* was one of the most polarizing and talked-about films of the year. While it was a critical darling and a major success at international film festivals, it famously alienated a segment of the general moviegoing public.
### **1. Critical Reception: "Arthouse Action"**
The film was met with near-universal acclaim from professional critics, who praised its fusion of 1980s retro-aesthetics with European arthouse sensibilities.
* **Cannes Success:** The film premiered at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, where it received a **15-minute standing ovation**. Director Nicolas Winding Refn won the **Best Director Award**, a rare feat for a genre-heavy action film.
* **Roger Ebert:** Ebert gave the film **3.5 out of 4 stars**, comparing Ryan Gosling’s performance to the stoic presence of Steve McQueen. He praised the film for its "visual poetry" and Refn’s ability to command attention through silence.
* **Peter Travers (*Rolling Stone*):** Travers praised the film’s "hard-edged brilliance" and noted that Albert Brooks, cast against type as a menacing villain, was a revelation.
* **Visual and Auditory Praise:** Critics were obsessed with the film’s "neon-noir" aesthetic. The cinematography by Newton Thomas Sigel and the **synth-pop soundtrack** (featuring artists like Kavinsky and College) were cited as major factors in the film's "cool" factor.
### **2. Audience Reception: The "CinemaScore" Disconnect**
Despite the critical praise, general audiences were often confused or frustrated by the film's pacing and marketing.
* **Dismal CinemaScore:** On its opening weekend, *Drive* received a **"C-" CinemaScore** from audiences. This grade is typically reserved for films that audiences dislike, but in this case, it reflected a mismatch between expectations and reality.
* **The "Misleading" Marketing:** The marketing campaign presented *Drive* as a high-octane action film in the vein of *The Fast and the Furious*. Many viewers were frustrated to find a slow-burn, meditative drama with long periods of silence and sudden, jarring bursts of extreme violence.
* **The Lawsuit:** In a famous anecdote from the time, a Michigan woman **filed a lawsuit** against the film’s distributor (FilmDistrict) and the theater, claiming "false advertising." She argued that the trailer promised a racing action movie but delivered something else entirely, and she also alleged the film was anti-Semitic (a claim critics largely dismissed as a misunderstanding of the villainous characters).
### **3. Specific Detail on Performances**
* **Ryan Gosling:** At the time, Gosling was transitioning from "heartthrob" (following *The Notebook*) to a serious auteur actor. His performance as the unnamed "Driver" was reviewed as a "masterclass in minimalism." Critics noted his ability to convey intensity despite having very few lines of dialogue.
* **Albert Brooks:** His performance as Bernie Rose was one of the most discussed aspects of the film. Brooks was known primarily as a comedic actor, and his transformation into a cold, lethal mob boss was considered one of the year's best supporting performances.
### **4. Box Office and Legacy**
* **Commercial Performance:** Produced on a modest budget of **$15 million**, the film was a commercial success, grossing approximately **$81 million** worldwide. It was a "sleeper hit" that relied on strong word-of-mouth among cinephiles.
* **Immediate Cult Status:** Within months of its release, *Drive* achieved cult status. The iconic **satin scorpion jacket** worn by Gosling became a best-selling item online, and the soundtrack stayed on the charts for months, helping to popularize the "Synthwave" musical genre.