Ramin Bahrani is a director most people probably never even have heard of because he makes low budget independent films. However film critic, Roger Ebert, has recently declared Ramin to be ¨the new great American director.¨ In 2006 he was named one of ¨US Stars of Tomorrow¨ by Screen International, and he has also won several awards for his previous films Chop Shop and Man Push Cart. Bahrani proves himself once again with Goodbye Solo, a movie about an unlikely friendship formed between a Senegalese taxi driver and a grumpy old southerner. One of them is full of hope and willing to continue on fighting for a better future, while the other is waiting to commit suicide because he has resigned to continue living. Goodbye Solo is much more than a film of hope versus hopelessness; it stays away from the classic Hollywood conventions and melodrama. The film is very unique and different from anything we have seen before. Bahrani not only directed the film, but he also wrote the screenplay for it along with Bahareh Azimi who has worked with him in the past. What makes this such a powerful film (besides the strong direction and great artistic shots) is the performance from newcomer Souleymane Sy Savane who really shines in this movie and makes you sympathize with his character.
The story takes place in a small city in North Carolina called Winston-Salem. Solo (Souleymane Sy Savane) is a Senegalese taxi driver and the film begins with him in a middle of a conversation with his passenger, William (Red West). William wants Solo to take him to Blowing Rock in a couple of weeks, a park in North Carolina famous for its peak that causes objects that are dropped to fly upward. Solo is a very talkative driver and wants William to explain to him why he is going to that park suspecting the worse. William is a very grumpy old man who seems depressed and is never in the mood to talk about his feelings or making any new friends. He seems to have a lot of regrets and is totally resigned, although Solo does what he can to try to bring some purpose into his life fearing the worse for William. Solo is a young man who has troubles of his own, but has a completely different approach towards life and is full of hope. He lives with his wife, Quiera (Carmen Leyva), who is pregnant with his child, and his step daughter Alex (Diana Franco Galindo). Solo dreams of becoming a flight attendant since he really doesn`t want to be a cab driver all his life, but his wife doesn`t want him to travel and they have an argument over this. Solo leaves his home and ends up staying with William in a motel for several days where they form an unlikely friendship. Several questions are raised during the movie about William´s life, such as why does he go to the movies so often, or what pills is he taking, and we discover the answers to these questions through Solo`s obsession to help his friend.
Baharni`s film is beautifully shot, there are several very nice artistic scenes, especially near the end of the film in Blowing Rock. The editing is also superb and also contributes to the overall success of the movie. Savane`s performance was great and shouldn`t have been overlooked by the critics because he truly gave one of the year`s best performances. This is a small film that you probably haven`t heard of, but you should definitely check it out because it is a great movie different from most Hollywood films. Goodbye Solo is a unique film, but if I had to compare it to some other movie I would say it reminded me a little of McCarthy`s The Visitor even though the subject matter is different the bond between two unlikely friends is similar. So if you liked The Visitor then you should definitely check Goodbye Solo out because it is a very good film.
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