'Drive' disturbing yet exhilarating

In the mesmerizing noir thriller 'Drive', director Nicolas Winding Refn ('Bronson', 'Pusher') takes James Sallis's eponymous pulp novel and lends it a stylish retro sheen, harkening back to archetypal "lone wolf" films of the '70s and '80s.

Ryan Gosling plays Driver (his real name is never given), a mechanic who moonlights as a wheelman, performing stunts for Hollywood productions and driving getaway cars for thieves.