SummaryWendy (Patricia Clarkson) is a fiery Manhattan author whose husband has just left her for a younger woman; Darwan (Ben Kingsley) is a soft-spoken taxi driver from India on the verge of an arranged marriage. As Wendy sets out to reclaim her independence, she runs into a barrier common to many lifelong New Yorkers: she’s never learned to d...
SummaryWendy (Patricia Clarkson) is a fiery Manhattan author whose husband has just left her for a younger woman; Darwan (Ben Kingsley) is a soft-spoken taxi driver from India on the verge of an arranged marriage. As Wendy sets out to reclaim her independence, she runs into a barrier common to many lifelong New Yorkers: she’s never learned to d...
Two great actors, Patricia Clarkson and Ben Kingsley, in a character study, doesn't get much better than that. And the story line, as with many shows today, has two lives and what is changing in each, how they react to the changes, and a new life after a life changing event. Well written and great acting.
Isabel Coixet's light hearted, soulfully intimate low-key comedy drama is a lovely excursion.
Wendy(Patricia Clarkson) is a sharp-tongued book critic, struggling to take control of her life, as her husband walks out of their 21 year old marital life for a younger woman. Her only daughter is off at Vermont.
Darwan(Ben Kingsley) is a cab driver and driving instructor, who has a calm dignifying character underneath his authoritative exterior. He is proud of his U.S citizenship as well as his cultural heritage. Darwan is potrayed as an honest, hard-working sikh immigrant from India.
Having never been behind the wheels, Wendy decides to get her driver's license and take control of her life. The clash of personalities lead to scenes of comic tension and witty comedy. Wendy is dumbstruck and tries to understand how Darwan's marriage with Jasleen, a woman he never met before works. The plot also takes time to show the struggles of Jasleen(Sarita Choudhary) to adapt to a new country and husband who is struggling to express his emotions.
As the platonic friendship between the culturally diverse lead duo develops, they help each other to move forward with their lives. "The driver's biggest problem is everyone else. You cant always trust people to behave properly" says Darwan. Ain't that true in real life as well?
Learning to Drive takes its time developing characters, which is its major strength. Its a very warm and straight-forward movie with very like-able characters and a wonderful perspective of human behavior.
What spares Learning to Drive is an awful lot of comedic talent and artistic good will. Clarkson and Kingsley imbue average material with easy charm and wit, clicking onscreen with the smooth platonic chemistry of old friends.
It’s no stretch for Kingsley to project stiff dignity and forthrightness, but that familiarity works against him here, despite his every effort to give the character a human pulse. Clarkson, expert at bringing authenticity to the most inauthentic material, gets to show far more range.
The religious and cultural influence in the modern America.
The second film together for the two lead actors and the director. This film characters were well understood and executed with a full details. It is always women filmmakers who do a fine job like this. While the western world is not able to differentiate between Sikhs and the one who they think these people are for just wearing turban, this film comes in handy to educate them. Especially the youths who are yet to grow up and learn what the real world is. No offense, just saying they are lack of the knowledge.
A simple drama about two people from two different races. Since they meet very often during the driving lessons, an unexpected bond develops between them and begin to understand each others agony despite their cultural gap. It helps them to re-organise their struggling life, but the relationship is put on a tested when it reached at a certain stage. How they react to it and the plan for the rest of their lives reveals before ending the narration smartly.
No twists, but the interesting concept and the choices of the characters makes the film one of the well organised low cost products with a quality of the practical standards. Ben was amazing as usual, and it is his one of the remarkable small roles. Patricia Clarkson too was in a very casual character display as a typical middle-aged American wife going through a crisis.
This film reminds me the 'Midnight My Love'. Somewhat similar film yet culturally differentiates. So this film's not about how good the story is, but the society, how it views a person from outside and inside. It is also about the individual characters on how their life transforms with a new friendship and while learning new stuffs to put behind their bad past. This film suit better for the adults because of the theme on them. So I suggest you if you are one to try this wonderful tale.
7/10
A tour of New York, a lesson of humanity and humility by two dysfunctional characters. Simple yet beautiful.
Let it be known that I wish Ben Kingsley was my driving instructor, my old one was not friendly, that jerk just yelled at me constantly. Learning to drive can be an outright stressful experience, but the movie makes it interestingly light and approachable by using comedic clash of personalities and cultures. Also, props to the leads for realizing the modest troubled characters.
Wendy (Patricia Clarkson) is a distraught wife who just finds out that her husband is cheating on her. Thus begin the arduous dance of divorce. Meanwhile, she's decided to take driving lessons as a cathartic act. Darwan (Ben Kingsley) steps in as the instructor. Both of them have a set of unique problems and serendipitously find solace in each other’s company.
For a leading female in New York, Wendy is a mess. It's not just Sex and The City mess, but complete wreck for about half of the movie. It's a humble depiction of character as she struggles to come in term with the divorce. The movie maintains a less melodramatic tone, this is a more realistic depiction and not a flamboyant drama.
Ben Kingsley plays as a Sikh here, at this point he can play any role extremely well, but it's nice to see him as someone other than some viceroy in medieval epic. There's a great respect to his Indian heritage and it easily looks genuine. He appears to be a calm voice of reason, although his life itself isn't perfect. It's rather humbling to see that someone with mentor persona deals with his own problems.
The film doesn't have striking development or twist, it's just a few strolls of a metropolis with two relatable characters. It presents a nice presentation, taking time to display the city's nuance with good cinematography as well as spicing the story with steadily flow of light humor. The scenes feel involving even though the two leads live very contrasting lives.
Learning to Drive is a lighthearted drama with nice addition to comedy and amazing acting. Highly recommended for casual audience for the humble and modest nature will soothingly entertain wide range of viewers.
When Patricia Clarkson gets in Ben Kingsley's cab, her husband has just dumped her. As she sets out to reclaim her life, she decides to take matters in her own hand…behind the wheel. That's when the mellow, wise, patient Indian immigrant comes back into her life. This film is basically a dialogue between the two of them, as we watch their lives change and their relationship grow. As a result, it's all about the performances and with two fine actors like these, it's a pleasure to watch. There's nothing **** in the story or even emotionally deep, just a sweet, predictable adult movie.
In “Learning To Drive” Wendi (Patricia Clarkson) is a successful writer and book critic who we meet as her husband (Jake Weber) is leaving for another woman. Darwan (Ben Kingsley) is a driving instructor who is an American citizen after looking for political asylum having been a prisoner in India. In addition he is working a second job as a taxi driver and is about to embark in an arranged marriage with an older woman (Sarita Choudhury) from his previous country.
Wendi, being a New Yorker--“Queens is not New York” --has never learned, never needed to learn how to drive--”With buses, cabs and trains you don’t have to learn to drive in New York (Manhattan)--consequently you know these two people will be thrown together especially with Darwan a straight ahead, sage, correct way of thinking, metaphor spouting wise man and Wendi a writer with imagination, no discipline, who only in her writing is focused and otherwise not too smart about other people.
Darwan, as a cab driver, witnesses the break up between Wendi and her husband as they are his fares after the two storm out of a restaurant. Wendi’s daughter, Tasher (Grace Gummer) goes to school in Vermont, and works on a farm, so in order to see her daughter--”My husband always did the driving”--which is not near any accessible transportation, she decides to take driving lessons and the two people of different temperaments, cultures, different thoughts on marriage are brought together for this ‘small’ independent movie. No, it doesn’t go where you think it will but only by a near miss.
Ben Kingsley, having a thicker accent than he did as Ghandi, brings more to the role than the script gives him in scenes as when he is harassed for his race or talks about what happened to him in India while Patricia Clarkson is luminous and at the same time, within the same scene, uncomprehending what is happening to her. There is a funny sex scene with a blind date and Samantha Bee has the best, and funniest line, in the movie playing Wendi’s sister.
The two leads, as expected give excellent performances, Jake Weber is strong in his scenes with Clarkson and this is the first time I have been impressed with Grace Gummer though her role is woefully underwritten. Sarita Choudhury introduces an interesting aspect to the film which could have added another dimension if the screenplay by Sarah Kernochan and the direction by Isabel Coixet had followed through.
“Learning How To Drive” is a 90 minute movie that holds your attention with the acting, what the film could have been and what it does and doesn’t do in the short running time.
Going in to ‘Learning to Drive’ without any fore knowledge as to what it’s about one could be forgiven for expecting to be seeing a comedy. Therefore, it comes as a bit of a surprise to find that it is actually quite a serious little drama. The story concerns a man (Ben Kingsley) and a woman (Patricia Clarkson) from very different cultures who, in the course of their time together as driving instructor and student, are able to embrace qualities from each other that have hitherto been lacking in their lives. It is a slight and insubstantial film, but there is sufficient originality and quirkiness in both writing and acting to appreciate its existence. It’s also great to see Patricia Clarkson in a rare leading role and she and Kingsley work well together. If ultimately the film falls short due to its limited ambition, it at least deserves recognition for attempting something different, albeit in a minor key.