LEARNING TO DRIVE (5 out of 10) Directed by Isabel Coixet; Written by Sarah Kernochan; Starring Patricia Clarkson, Ben Kingsley, Grace Gummer, Jake Weber, Sarita Choudhury, Samantha Bee, John Hodgman; Rated R for “language and sexual content,” Running time 90 minutes; In limited release starting August 24,2015, expanding to more cities on 9/4 and 9/11.
Ever sit through a movie and think “This would make a good long-form article in a literary magazine but doesn’t quite have enough content to fill a feature-length movie?” And then it’s no surprise when the credits roll and they tell you it was, in fact, based off an article. Sigh.
Learning to Drive tells the story of Darwan (Kingsley), an Indian Sikh granted political asylum in New York City, where he now lives and works as a cab driver and driving instructor. One night Wendy (Clarkson) and her soon-to-be ex-husband enter his cab amidst a very awkward marital fight. Darwan later returns something she left in his car, and she notices he also teaches driving. Needing to learn as her husband was always the one who drove, she begins taking lessons from Darwan, who is also in the middle of being set up with an arranged bride.
There are lots of metaphors about how driving is like life. And that’s about it.
It’s really quite thin, and despite Kingsley being in top form in terms of acting, there just isn’t much here to hang on to. Clarkson’s literary professor and critic and author character is so one note, it’s almost embarrassing. You could turn it into a drinking game of every time she talks about how she loves words and books more than people.
The exploration of the prejudices Sikhs face both at home and in America is interesting, as is an exploration of their religious and marriage practices, but that isn’t the focus of the film, as much as it should’ve been.
The film itself is like a driving lesson. While it moves forward and attempts to be instructive, it doesn’t really take you anywhere. And it’s more a simulation of real life than an actual escape or artistic representation of real life.
5 out of 10