Movie Review - Driven Vs. Framing John DeLorean

There are numerous examples of so-called twin films. Twin films are ones that are about the same thing, usually on a narrative level and that are released in the same year or within a year of each other. One example this year is A Dog's Journey (2019) and The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019). Both are about dogs and their human male owners where the film is narrated from the dog's perspective or point-of-view. That is what I describe as "so-called" twin films. Real twin films are films that are similar more specifically, meaning both films are literally about the same thing. The example that I cite is Capote (2005) and Infamous (2006). Both films were literally about Truman Capote as he wrote his book In Cold Blood. They weren't about two writers writing crime books. No, they were both about the same person doing the exact same thing. The actors differed and the behind-the-scenes crew differed, but the different groups were trying to tell the same, exact story.

If you discount films like A Dog's Journey and The Art of Racing in the Rain. These pair of titles are the second real twin films that I've seen this year. Earlier in 2019, we had Fyre Fraud on Hulu and we had Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened on Netflix. Both were documentaries about Billy McFarland, a businessman who tried to finance a crazy venture and who was ultimately charged with financial crimes related to that venture. I bring up those twin films about McFarland not only because they're twins but also because the films here are also about a businessman who tried to finance a crazy venture and who was ultimately charged with financial crimes related to that venture. McFarland's crimes were only two years ago in 2017. The crimes in the films here were over 35 years ago in 1982.

Because of the nature of film criticism, comparing and contrasting the twin films are inevitable. Determining which is better is also an inevitable thing. In my review of the McFarland films, I determined that the Netflix version was better than the Hulu one. In this case, I would also say one is better than the other, or there is one that I prefer over the other. I would include that if you are going to see both, one is preferable to see first and then the other. Similarly to the McFarland films, the Netflix one is the one to see first, not simply because it's better but because it lays out the events in a powerful and potent way that accounts for someone not knowing anything about McFarland or the incidents surrounding him. The Hulu one seems to be built more on the assumption that the viewer already knows McFarland and everything that happened to him.

In June, IFC Films released Don Argott and Sheena M. Joyce's Framing John DeLorean, a documentary about John DeLorean, an automobile designer and executive at General Motors who created his own car company. Yet, in 1982, he was arrested for cocaine trafficking and later charged with fraud and tax evasion. The documentary includes dramatic reenactments starring Alec Baldwin (Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock) as John DeLorean. Argott and Joyce do an interesting thing where they have Baldwin, as well as the other actors like Morena Baccarin (Deadpool and Gotham), break character and be an interview subject in the documentary too. Along with archival footage, the directors interview people who were trying to make a movie about DeLorean but didn't succeed. Having the actors break character and interviewing fellow filmmakers makes the film more about perception and image of the man rather than anything else.

However, like the Hulu film about McFarland, Argott and Joyce's documentary feels like it was made with the assumption that the audience would be more familiar with DeLorean. Anyone watching it won't be lost and they will be informed enough about the DeLorean arrest and the controversy surrounding it, but it does feel like some prerequisite knowledge or awareness of the man is needed. As the ending of the documentary shows, the man's name has been ingrained into pop culture and into public domain, thanks to the hit film Back to the Future (1985), but that ingraining might be tenuous as the years go on.

Familiarity with the man doesn't appear to be the thrust of the first half of the documentary. In the two years leading up to DeLorean's arrest, he established a manufacturing plant in Belfast, Ireland. The directors interview a few of the workers at that plant. The struggles of the Irish people prior to the plant, during the plant's existence and after the plant closed are the focus of that first half. DeLorean's trial and aftermath are sensational, but it doesn't have the power or the draw of listening to the stories and experiences of the workers at the factory in Ireland. The commentary from the actors about DeLorean and his family for some reason just aren't that compelling.

In August, we saw the release of Nick Hamm's Driven, a narrative comedy about John DeLorean with Jason Sudeikis (Horrible Bosses and Saturday Night Live) playing Jim Hoffman, a FBI informant who was caught smuggling cocaine in a chartered airplane for which Jim was the pilot. He had a wife and children who the feds set up in southern California in an attempt to use him as a way of busting cocaine dealers. It just so happens that Jim lives next door or in the same neighborhood as John DeLorean with his wife and children. Jim befriends John, but when things go bad, Jim sees an opportunity to use John to save himself or advance his fortune.

Hamm's film is not only a breezy story about crime and friendship. It feels in a lot of ways like the recent Tom Cruise comedy, American Made (2017). The humor is very much on point, mainly due to the clever writing from Colin Bateman, as well as the funny performance from Sudeikis. He's perfect as this whip-smart conman who always has a laughable or charming line. His presence here certainly carries this film from beginning to end. It helps that he bounces off equally amazing performances from Lee Pace (Halt and Catch Fire and Pushing Daisies) who plays John DeLorean with aplomb and suave.

There are also standout performances from Corey Stoll (First Man and Ant-Man), as the FBI agent squeezing both Jim and John, and Judy Greer (Ant-Man and Jurassic World), as Ellen Hoffman, the wife of Jim. It's a running joke that Greer is a great actress who rarely gets good parts. She's either the best friend or the wife that barely gets anything to do. This could be perceived as one of those parts, but I would argue that she gets more to do here than sometimes she's allowed, and as usual she shines. I would also acknowledge in the supporting cast, Michael Cudlitz (The Walking Dead and Southland) who plays Morgan Hetrick, a quirky yet devilish bruiser of a cocaine dealer who is used as a way of busting John. Cudlitz is just another example of how the cast is just fantastic here.

One could argue that Hamm's comedy isn't really about John DeLorean. It also feels like it reveres DeLorean, even more than Argott and Joyce's documentary. It does slightly paint DeLorean as a victim. By that token, Jim would be the bad guy. Hamm's film puts Jim through a bit of the ringer of guilt, frustration and regret. As such, it doesn't totally demonize him.

Framing John DeLorean
Not Rated but for general audiences.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 49 mins.

Driven
Rated R for language, some sexual references, drug use and brief nudity.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 54 mins.

Available on DVD and VOD.