Directed By Ethan Coen

Starring – Margaret Qualley, Geraldine Viswanathan, Beanie Feldstein

The Plot – The film follows Jamie (Qualley), an uninhibited free spirit bemoaning yet another breakup with a girlfriend, and her demure friend Marian (Viswanathan) who desperately needs to loosen up. In search of a fresh start, the two embark on an impromptu road trip to Tallahassee, but things quickly go awry when they cross paths with a group of inept criminals along the way, in search of something valuable that the two ladies now possess.

Rated R for crude sexual content, full nudity, adult language and some violent content.

DRIVE-AWAY DOLLS – Official Trailer 2 [HD] – Only In Theaters February 23 (youtube.com)

POSITIVES

It may have taken thirty years for Coen’s idea of emulating 70’s exploitation films to come to fruition, but it’s clear that the prolonged time has only pushed his passion for the project even deeper, conjuring an unapologetic lesbian road trip that, like those predecessors, runs on a full tank of sex and spontaneous violence splattered throughout the engagement. As his first project alone, without the assistance of his brother Joel by his side, Ethan propels the adrenaline of his ambition with personality in every element of the presentation, in turn leading to crafty production values and euphoric imagery that effortlessly enables a full-fledged engagement that feels so uniquely appealing from anything else that can currently be found at the box office. Whether in the sharp tilts of the lens, the many contrasting angles intensifying the dialogue, or clever uses of 70’s tracks amid the movie’s expressive soundtrack, Coen taps into the kind of unapologetic debauchery that obnoxious male protagonists have thrived upon for decades, proving indeed that anything men can do, women can in fact do better, and do so while emphasizing every opportunity to double down on its hard R-rating. The script is intentionally bouncy between our dual female protagonists’ road trip and a group of persistent male criminals out to find them, with groundedly natural and rhythmic dialogue not only bringing to life these vibrant personalities, but also vividly conveying the opposing dynamics between Jamie and Marian that drove much of my investment to the narrative. I love that the mystery of the briefcase is essentially what gets the butts of the audience into the seats, but in reality gives way to this beautifully constructed love story between them that I truly didn’t want to deviate away from, especially since the script occasionally taps into the backstory of Marian during her sexual awakening at such an early age. Despite their opposing personalities, the film does a great job at articulating why they nourishingly compliment one another, with banter and lived-in kind of chemistry that outlines the bigger picture of their histories, long before the film and its focus ever took shape. It also leads to some energetically indulging performances between the two, with Qualley and Viswanathan throwing caution to the wind while helming these combustible elements that feel like they could blow at any minute, before taking the film’s focus in an entirely different and unexpected direction. Qualley has had quite an impactful last couple of years, with scene-stealing instances in everything from “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” to sex-thriller “Sanctuary”, but her commitment to craft as Jamie goes a long way in prescribing the kind of depth needed to depict her as a commanding force, with a consistent southern drawl and unflinching social observations that makes her stand out more as a character than a living, breathing person, but in the best kind of way. Viswanathan’s timidly reserved demeanor does initially outline her as a snobby conservative, before eventually giving way to an appealing tenderness that springs from her character discovering what she’s been missing all along, with Gheraldine’s expected dry deliveries as the eyes of the audience that led to a majority of the effective gags that the script seamlessly delivered throughout the proceedings. Beyond Margaret and Gheraldine’s , Coen flexes his connection book in full force, either with emerging character actors like Colman Domingo or Bill Camp, big name cameos from icons like Matt Damon or Pedro Pascal, or even in the mix of one familiar pop star, who shows up during one political-shaming hallucinatory acid trip sequence, adding further to the anything goes mentality of the sex, obscenities and violent indulgences of the script, which allow this to feel anything unlike Ethan has produced to this point in his dazzling career as a master storyteller.

NEGATIVES

While the film is littered with aforementioned stylistic impulses that add a sense of manic energy to the proceedings, some choices didn’t land as prominently as others, mainly the editing techniques for scene to scene transitions that become tedious by the film’s second act. I can appreciate and commend what Coen was going for, with regards to tapping into the 70’s fever dreams of drug-induced imagery and irrefutible evidence for its particular place in timely history, but the transitions themselves take away far too much momentum and kinetic energy from the storytelling unraveling in the narrative at the forefront of the engagement, leading to these prolonged spaces in between what feels like episodic drama that never know when to quit while they’re ahead. I use that figure of speech because the transitions, while intoxicating with stimulating color or trippy halluniatory imagery, persist a bit longer than necessary for transitions into the next arc of the storytelling, feeling like intentional padding to the elasticity of a 79 minute run time that never feels comfortable in the extent of its own material. The transitions certainly rob it of such, but the overall pacing of the film responsibly feels like it’s the bigger issue, with an overriding tug-of-war to the individualized scenes and sequences that can’t maintain a stoic consistency. Sometimes scenes can feel rushed with abrupt developments that feel like they’re missing a scene or two in between rapid leaps in logic, while other times moments can feel prolonged with a complete lack of developments, and while I was never truly bored with the experience, I can say that the naturalistic flow of exposition that never found the kind of comfortable medium didn’t make it any easier to stay invested, leaving the film feeling like a ten page idea that needed to stretch it to fifty to warrant the big screen treatment. Finally, I was treated to a couple of laughs in effective deliveries during the opening act, but more times than not I found myself growing older by the flavor of the material, which even for emulating the bizarreness of 70’s exploitation films, maintained a try-hard emphasis that, crudely and not charmingly, overindulged in ruthless vulgarities. I’m not a prude to where I hear sexualization or curse words and I cringe, but it’s always been my belief that they should be used sparingly and precisely to maintain their sharp effectiveness, but here it’s utilized with a complete absence of subtle nuance, instead catering to the desparation in shock humor that grows stale by the film’s halfway point, with one of the less consistent effectiveness rates of any Coen Brothers comedy.

OVERALL
“Drive Away Dolls” isn’t destined to be a cult favorite for anyone outside of the LGBTQ community, due to inconsistent humor or stalled editing techniques, but it has enough creative fuel in the tank to reach its final destination, cementing an artistically ambitious first chapter in the solo side of Ethan Coen’s second act. With mesmerizing chemistry between Qualley and Viswanathan giving way to something sincere, as well as a full-fledged homage to the kind of 70’s exploitation films that inspired Coen, the expedition is able to ride out some of its tough and turbulent bumpy roads, in turn cementing a brief but audacious spark to queer depiction that puts a fresh coat of paint on a contemporary spin.

My Grade: 6/10 or C