Writer/director Derek Cianfrance's follow-up to the arguably superior Blue Valentine seemed to divide audiences and critics alike when it first shot into theatres earlier this year: a bombastically-realised crime saga that wasn't advertised as such in the trailer (people were presumably expecting something akin to Drive), it's safe to say the story never really comes together in all the ways it should have. And yet, for all its flaws, The Place Behind the Pines still feels like an important and worthwhile film - the sheer passion of its director seeps into every single frame. But The Place Beyond the Pines is not an action movie, nor does it pretend to be. Still, there's one brilliant, innovative and highly kinetic sequence that occurs towards the beginning of the flick, as Ryan Gosling's bank robber makes an attempted escape on a motorcycle as Bradley Cooper's cop pursues, who's confined to his police car as Gosling races through a cemetery. We witness the whole chase from inside Cooper's vehicle, and the sequence is wonderfully shot in a single, unbroken take. For sheer thrill factor alone, this was one of the most exciting scenes of 2013.