Directed by Ethan Coen and co-written by Tricia Cooke, Drive-Away Dolls is a bumpy but satisfying lesbian road trip comedy.
On paper, Drive-Away Dolls feels like a classic Coen Brothers film: it features an impromptu journey across the country, a taste of neo-noir, and quirky characters with existential crises. But the one thing that makes Drive-Away Dolls stand out is that it’s also gay as hell. Directed by Ethan Coen and co-written by him and his wife, Tricia Cooke, Drive-Away Dolls is a love letter to lesbians and lesbian spaces where women can discover themselves and each other, even if just for the night.
The film follows Marian (Geraldine Viswanathan) and Jamie (Margaret Qualley), best friends who couldn’t be more different. Jamie is a free spirit who revels in one-night stands and neon-lit walls of lesbian bars, whereas Marian is more reserved and prefers to read Henry James instead of partying.
When Marian plans to visit her aunt in Tallahassee, Jamie decides to tag along (mainly because she got kicked out of her apartment when her girlfriend caught her cheating) and suggests renting a driveaway car. But they don’t know that in the trunk of their rental is a briefcase filled with precious cargo sought out by someone known as The Chief (Colman Domingo) and his two goons (Joey Slotnick and C.J. Wilson). So, while Jamie and Marian are coasting from Philly to Florida, the goons try their hardest to keep up.
“We get our act together, together.”
Pacing-wise, Drive-Away Dolls feels more like a Formula 1 race than an intimate road trip. At a break-neck 84 minutes, the film constantly moves from beat to beat without a moment to breathe and doesn’t have much of a storyline to get hooked on to. And when something important occurs, it’s interrupted by odd psychedelic scenes that feel out of place. And when the film starts to build up to a satisfying climax (pun very much intended), it ends too cleanly, leaving much to be desired.
The characters are the heart of Drive-Away Dolls, particularly Jamie and Marian, who dominate every scene with their electrifying chemistry. Jamie, with her sultry southern charm, and Marian, with her modest and straightforward way of thinking, make a great pair of Odd Couple-esque BFFs who always toe the line between supporting and killing each other. And that dynamic carries the film, especially with its weaker story.
The bottom line.
Drive-Away Dolls is a silly movie featuring lesbian characters doing silly things, and by god, it felt so refreshing to watch. Cooke, who is proudly queer, showcases her love for lesbian spaces, whether that be a seedy bar in the middle of nowhere or a basement make-out with an all-female soccer team. With recent films like Bottoms and Bodies Bodies Bodies, it’s great to finally see stories centered around queer women being both flawed and funny.
Drive-Away Dolls opens in theaters February 23. Watch the trailer here.
Images courtesy of Focus Features. Read more articles by Yasmin Kleinbart here.
REVIEW RATING
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Drive-Away Dolls - 8/10
8/10
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