Ramin Bahrani’s ‘Goodbye Solo’ Stands Alone So Far in 2009

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CHICAGO – There were a few great films of late 2008 that weren’t widely released until early this year including “Waltz With Bashir” and “Che,” but Ramin Bahrani’s “Goodbye Solo” is the first truly great film of 2009. The director of “Man Push Cart” and “Chop Shop” and the man who Roger Ebert recently dubbed “the new great American director” has delivered a haunting, genuine drama about acceptance that will stay with you long after the credits roll and will likely stand among the best of the year nine months from now.

“Goodbye Solo” opens abruptly, almost mid-conversation, in a crucial life moment between a Senegalese cab driver named Solo (Souleymane Sy Savane) and his elderly passenger named William (Red West). Solo’s client is making a reservation for a long trip on October 20th to Blowing Rock, a legendary spot in the mountains near Winston-Salem where the wind blows so strongly that legend says it can lift a man into the sky.

Goodbye Solo
Goodbye Solo
Photo credit: Noruz Films

After a few unanswered questions, Solo becomes concerned that William is not going sight-seeing in the mountains. The man with the deep sadness in his eyes doesn’t intend to come back from Blowing Rock. The gentle, sweet, young cab driver who has his own problematic life with an expecting wife named Quiera (Carmen Leyva) and a daughter named Alex (Diana Franco Galindo) becomes a bit obsessed with William.

At first, he merely begs dispatch to give him all of William’s rides, but when the old man’s behavior gets even more disconcerting. including selling his apartment and moving into a motel, Solo goes further. He tries to get closer and closer to William until that fateful day on Blowing Rock.

Goodbye Solo
Goodbye Solo
Photo credit: Noruz Films

Meanwhile, Solo has his own problems. His wife doesn’t approve of a dream job that will take him away from his family. After a huge fight, Solo even ends up living in a motel room with William. As he tries to dig deeper and unravel why William wants to go to Blowing Rock, he’s forced to look closer at the path his own life is going to take.

On paper, it may sound like “Goodbye Solo” could be generic and melodramatic. At its very core, it could easily be a TV buddy movie - the cab driver who tries to save the old man and the lessons they learn along the way. But there’s nothing manipulative, melodramatic, or generic about “Goodbye Solo”.

It’s the way Bahrani approaches the material that keeps the film completely genuine. I never once doubted Solo or William’s actions or motives. They are as well-rounded a pair of characters as you are likely to see all year.

One of the reasons for the success of “Solo” is the focus on the things unsaid. William doesn’t lay out his plans for the trip to Blowing Rock. Solo doesn’t vocalize his fears about not only what William plans to do but his own future. As he has marital problems of his own and is unsure of his own destiny as he struggles to become a flight attendant. He worries that, perhaps like William, his dreams won’t be realized.

Don’t we all worry about that at some point or another? And don’t we all like to think that we could convince someone at their end of their line to hang on just a little bit longer? What if we can’t? What if we simply need to be there as driver, passenger, or even flight attendant?

“Goodbye Solo” is a flawless film with pitch-perfect performances and dozens of smart decisions behind the camera. It is that rare film that deserves to be called “haunting”. As the credits rolled and the emotional impact of the film hit me, I knew it was a work that I would take with me for day, months, and even years. Probably until I reach the end of the cab ride of life myself. Don’t miss this film.

‘Goodbye Solo’ stars Souleymane Sy Savane, Red West, Carmen Leyva, and Diana Franco Galindo. It was written by Ramin Bahrani & Bahareh Azimi and directed by Bahrani. It opens on March 27th, 2009 at the Landmark Century Theatre in Chicago. It is not rated.

HollywoodChicago.com content director Brian Tallerico

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

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