With Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Dane DeHaan, Rose Byrne, Eva Mendes and Ray Liotta in front of the camera and, particularly Blue Valentine’s Derek Cianfrance behind it, you know The Place Beyond The Pines is going to be more than just a basic crime drama. This first trailer for the film appears to confirm that.
Pines finds Gosling as Luke, a motorcycle stunt rider who discovers he has a son with former lover Romina (Mendes). Desperate to prove himself as a father and to support his son, he turns to robbing banks.
His new life of crime brings him into collision with ambitious rookie cop Avery (Cooper), who chases him down. Avery has his own dreams, including a family with Jennifer (Byrne) and, eventually, a step into politics. But he also discovers that both the police life and politics are fraught with corruption.
And that’s just one part of a story that also encompasses the struggles of the two men’s sons as they grow to become high school students.
Cianfrance looks to have brought another exploration of what it is to be a man under tough circumstances, along with a meditation on family, legacy, choices and consequences. And with that cast? We’re definitely up to see this one.
The Place Beyond The Pines is out on April 12.