User reviews

I saw this in the "Someone to Watch" and "American Independents" sidebars at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival.

Ramin Bahrani's work improves dramatically with this story of a Senegalese cab driver trying to make a life in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The story arc of his relationship with William, a fare who contracts for a one-way ride a couple of weeks in the future is well-drawn and quite satisfying. All of the prime relationships in this story are deftly developed: Solo's quest to "save" William (from what is clearly a suicide trip), Solo's efforts at providing for his second family (with concomitant tension from Wife #2), the effect of step-daughter (?) Alex on William, William's mystery relationship to the young man selling tickets at the local multi-plex.

The film was excellent technically. Bahrani likes "dark", yet the framing and focus provide for a nice intimacy with the characters. The "money" scene at the end (not giving away the plot here!) is beautifully framed, raw, elemental, vertigo-inducing without looking down.

Having not liked Man Push Cart (his first film) I feel that with this movie I have found a middle ground with Bahrani: I cared about the characters and I was told a story. But Bahrani likes mystery. And here there is a lot of mystery, very satisfying mystery. Worth seeing twice (which I did!).

What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object? Solo (Souleymane Sy Savane) is a Senagalese cabbie with a pretty good outlook on life. He seems to be always smiling. He meets William (Red West), who wants a ride 10 days from now to the top of a mountain to a place called Blowing Rock. He doesn't plan to return.

Solo takes it upon himself to save this man, and William is just as determined to ignore him and proceed with his mission.

There are no cute lines. The film is real. It is about how real humans interact and it takes place in a real place. You are captivated watching the dance between the two over the 10 days.

At the time all this is playing out, Solo is dealing with troubles on the home front, and working to get accepted into flight attendant school.

You'll have to interpret the ending for yourself.

Ramin Bahrani follows up his two previous greats (Chop Shop, Man Push Cart) with another winner.

"The basis of optimism is sheer terror." Oscar Wilde

The two improbable "travelers" in Patrice Leconte's Man on the Train seem like old men at a nursing home compared to the dynamic layers of regret and hope between Senegalese cab driver Solo (Souleymane Sy Savane) and grizzled old man William (Red West)in Goodbye Solo. Solo takes him on several rides in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, culminating in a life-changing one in the Smokey Mountains.

This tense little drama of ordinary people has a distant relationship to Beckett and Pinter, whose dramas introduce unknown forces and people who change things, even if those elements don't appear. Iranian director/writer Ramin Bahrani, along with co-writer Bahareh Azimi, has neatly shown the quotidian events of Solo's life, from the joys of a loving step-daughter and new son to strain of trying to become a flight attendant. Upon the entrance of the troubled William into his life, Solo deals with his urge to help William overcome depression and disappointment and Solo's own existential uncertainties.

Goodbye SOlo has large ambitions about showing the need to understand the end of life for the desperately disappointed and the beginning of a happy life for the positive, optimistic newcomers in the great melting pot. Solo remains hopeful in both arenas despite the forces allied against him, finding strength in his alliance with William just as characters in Beckett and Pinter find theirs.

The coda is as impressive as any other this year: the top of one of the North Carolina hills is circumscribed by an eccentric wind that seems to blow up and back at the same time, figuratively signaling the end and beginning. Solo and step-daughter Alex take comfort in the danger of the wind and precipice adjoining the safety of each other.

The message is clear—life goes on, sometimes dangerously, sometimes beautifully.

Solo (Souleymane Sy Savane) is a cabbie in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He's from Senegal sending money home for his extended family. William (Red West) hires him to drive one way up the local mountain Blowing Rock where wind causes updraft. He's tired, bitter, and sold everything including his apartment except for a couple of suitcases. Solo is talkative and unrelentingly positive. The two men slowly find connections.

Souleymane Sy Savane gives an unrelenting performance. There is a sense of a changing South. The one thing I don't understand is why the two guys spend so much time together. Even William asks why he keeps getting Solo as his cabbie. It would make more sense for a movie over one night. It would create more intensity.

Two men are in a taxicab. The passenger is a scowling, angry, misanthropic old man. The cabbie is a smiling, exuberant African immigrant. In a few lines of dialogue we learn that the misanthrope wants to be taken to Blowing Rock, North Carolina on the 20th of the month. "Why?" jokes the cabbie, "You gonna jump off?" No reply. The cabbie's glowing smile disappears.

The poetry of that opening scene is only rivaled by its ability to set a powerful air of suspense that carries through the entire 91-minute film all the way until the last minute. And even though there aren't any flashy car chases, shootouts, steamy sex scenes or fantastical plot twists, "Goodbye Solo" grabs your full attention from start to finish.

The theme, beautifully set in the opening scene & fleshed out as the story progresses, centers around the duality of the American dream and the American nightmare. The cabbie, relatively new to the USA, loves life and the endless opportunities life presents. He has a job and a family, neither of which are perfect, but they make him happy nonetheless. And he genuinely loves people. The old man is bitter, alone, presumably due to a tragic family meltdown, and he just wants to be left alone. Just as the cabbie is exploring new opportunities, the old man spends his days tying up loose ends: selling his home, closing out his bank accounts, etc. Over the course of 2 weeks or so, we witness the interaction--the philosophical struggle--between these two men, and the suspense of the outcome is maintained until the film's final scene.

The acting is absolutely 1st class with both men, particularly by the main character "Solo" played by Souléymane Sy Savane in his feature debut. His way of portraying raw optimism and hope is truly worthy of the description Roger Ebert used: "a force of nature". At the same time, it's not over-the-top unbelievable like Pollyanna or some children's fantasy character. He plays an intelligent man fully aware of the struggles in life, yet he has faith in his own determination. And isn't that the key to happiness for all of us? The old man character is the antithesis and equally believable. If you've ever suffered a horrible tragedy you know that sometimes nothing can cut through. Nothing. And that's what we see here: a man so resolute in his cynicism that you'd give up on him in 10 seconds.

And so, we see the cinematic version of the age-old physics puzzle: what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object?

The movie takes a quiet, measured pace with plenty of room to breathe. There are gorgeous shots of nature as well as equally haunting views of an empty downtown Winston-Salem at night. Funny, I've driven through that city scores of times on I-95 without giving it a second thought. But next time I think I'll take a small detour and visit. I also need to see this place called Blowing Rock to find out if it's real. The view from up there looks like something Count Dracula would see looking out over the misty mountains of Transylvania.

There aren't many popular films to compare this to, but I'd say if you liked the British film "Happy Go-Lucky" or the indie film "This Is Martin Bonner" or the Japanese "Shiki-Jitsu" (Ritual) or even Kurosawa's cinematic masterpiece "Ikiru" (To Live), then don't hesitate to see "Goodbye Solo".

This director will one day make a great movie. This isn't it. But it's worth seeing for the stellar performances, particularly by the incandescent Savane as Solo. All the actors are excellent - Diana Franco Galindo, as a ten-year old is great. The textures of life, the little details that tell you what the characters lives are really like are very well done. Bahrani has good ideas, artistic vision and technical prowess.

You could compare him with the Dardenne brothers. But they have mastered the roughly-hewn, realistic, pithy story, and they have developed their own unique, humanistic and supremely crafted way of telling their stories. In their films, the characters and their lives pull the story along. Their films pulse with thrumming heart-beats. GS doesn't.

I almost don't want to criticise Goodbye Solo, but I must because I think Bahrani can do better. GS doesn't gel all the way. The heart is there, the intention is noble, yet it's as if the director needs a better pair of glasses on to make us see his vision. GS was way better than Chop Shop. Let's keep our eyes on this guy.

Solo is an African immigrant, living in North Carolina, driving a taxi in order to support his family. His life is a constant struggle to survive. He meets William, an old man filled with regrets, who hired the driver to take him to Blowing Rock, a mountain peak where objects fly upward, due to the wind currents.

Bill only asks for a one way ride, and Solo assumes that he is planning a suicide. He introduces Bill to his wife and stepdaughter, Alex, to try to convince him that life is worth living. I found the story a little too sentimental, but because Souleymane Sy Savane and Red West are so good in the lead roles, the sappy aspect can be forgiven. The men slowly build a trusting relationship and I was impressed by their wonderful chemistry. The ninety one minutes breeze by and Goodbye Solo is well worth your time.

Some people are so attached to their story that they manage to continually sabotage their aliveness and their capacity for love. Even when someone reaches out to them and challenges the skewed way in which they have constructed their world, they effectively shut them out. Ramin Bahrani's third feature, Goodbye Solo, is about William, a man clinging to his victimization act so tightly that he turns away from the only person who cares, a high-energy cab driver from Senegal who is willing to go the extra mile to tear down the wall that separates William from his fellow human beings.

Similar in narrative to Abbas Kiarostami's masterpiece A Taste of Cherry, Solo (Souléymane Sy Savané) a Senegalese immigrant living in Winston Salem, North Carolina (where the director grew up) picks up a 72-year-old Caucasian passenger named William, played by Red West, a former Marine, stuntman, boxer, and bodyguard for Elvis Presley, who Solo refers to as "Big Dog". We learn next to nothing about the cantankerous old man. He refuses to engage the gregarious Solo in conversation except to offer him $1000 to drive him to Blowing Rock, a windy mountainous area, in two weeks with the depressing implication that it will be the end of the road for him, both literally and figuratively.

Similar in theme to Mike Leigh's Poppy in Happy-Go-Lucky, Solo does not back off from his selfless display of good humor even when confronted by William's cold rejection. He maintains his optimism when studying for an exam to become a flight attendant. Solo knows where to find drugs or a sexual partner but there is no hint that he ever partakes. Eventually some of his positive attitude begins to break down barriers. William helps Solo in his studying, and allows him to move into his motel room when he runs into marital difficulties with his pregnant Mexican wife (Carmen Leyva). They go out drinking together, Solo introduces him to his stepdaughter Alex (Diana Franco Galindo), does his laundry for him, checks his medicine stash to see if he has some hidden terminal illness, and even searches the motel room to try and find a picture of a relative he could contact.

Gradually the two men appear to draw closer, at times showing moments of connection, and then falling back into uncertainty and rejection. Solo still searches for the clue that can prevent the inevitable, even going so far as to find out why William continually attends a local movie theater and engages in conversation with the young cashier at the box office. Bahrani's Solo is not a stereotype of the cool hip black man out to rescue the forlorn white man from himself. Solo is a multi-faceted human being with his own set of problems who is always depicted with respect. The finale, shot in the beautiful North Carolina Mountains in October, captures the stirring symphony of autumn color, and the long look that William and Solo give each other before they part is the essence of compassion, given freely with an open heart - even to the point when no payback is achieved or expected.

Goodbye Solo reminded me of Abbas Kioristami's A taste of cherry. I gave it 10 out of 10 to Kioristami's movie while Goodbye Solo deserves only 7.

I enjoyed Solo's acting though. It could be a better movie if Solo and William had interacted more. I couldn't understand why they started sharing a room together and after living for some time their friendship remained almost as it was.

It wasn't very convincing.

Director is still so young I personally wait better works from him in the future.

Solo was a relentlessly optimistic character, regardless of the setback, he rebounded immediately. Or, he brought himself back to a sunny state by a deep and touching effort that was illuminated with care and beauty. The older man, William, on the otherhand, worked hard to maintain his life-has-beaten-me-down disposition. So when a happy/touching moment overtakes him, the director shares the ray of hope, the precious glimmer of being touched despite himself. So the film is filled with these gems welling from opposite natures pushing against each other. The buds of nature push forth despite the obstacles. Solo was the everchanging sunshine in this film.

The pacing was not rushed and only 1 or 2x did I find myself saying "I got it, move on". The acting was genuine and I was amazed how everday, duldrum existence was portrayed with compassion among people who have little possessions, yet no glories imposed, no moments of drama asking for viewer's awe (i.e. Streepless).

The cinematography was expertly crafted: people were positioned that complimented and complemented the background scene. The bleakness of the tobacco-industry sooted parts of town was not beautified, rather its interest captivated me in showing its richness in layers of aging infrastructure moaning as a tired, old beast. Again, I was consistently sated when I looked at the mis-en-scene.

This film is a big reward for seeking out independent, small-budget films---something I seldom have with any film.

Story about an unusual friendship of two men completely different emotions and behavior. I think this movie good enough

This movie is often being called an overlooked one, or even one that is under-praised and deserved to sweep the Oscars. But let me say that the movie is just not being THAT good. It's a good humble little movie, that is being like a slice of life but it's at the same time also a really underwritten one because in the end the movie simply doesn't resolve anything, which makes you wonder what you have watch the previous 90 minutes for.

It's not a movie with a message in it or not even with a morale. The movie in the end leaves more questions than answers, which is due to the fact that never gets resolved or explained at the end. You can over-analyze this movie and its intentions but I call it an anti-climax and the most disappointing aspect about this movie, which I still liked though. It's just being an underwritten movie and often picks the easy road but at the same time it also manages to avoid a lot of clichés or false sentiments. This is probably why I still really liked the movie.

And there is also no denying that this is still a very well done film, considering all of its limited resources. The narrative, camera-work and editing all works out for this type of movie and its really a genre that seems to suit Ramin Bahrani directing style and approach.

It's one of those movies that prefers mostly non-professional actors for most roles in this movie, in order to give the movie a more realistic and every day life feeling to it. Personally I'm not a big fan of this, since I have seen too many movies in which this simply did not worked out. And in this movie it only works out half strangely enough. The one moment the acting is just spot on but on the other there are also some moments in which the main actors deliver their lines toe-cringing bad. But it's hard to say if this is only just the actor's fault or also that of the director or writer's. Anyway, it makes it seem odd and wrong that the acting in this movie is being praised so highly, while it in fact is really being a mixed bag and I'm talking about both Souleymane Sy Savane's and Red West's performance then. The only performance that was consistent to be honest came from the young Diana Franco Galindo.

It's a movie that I thought was a great watch throughout, despite of its somewhat disappointing ending but it's just not a movie that ever touched me in any way. The characters felt far too distant for that, again, because the movie is being somewhat underwritten. So the movie to me is still being a bit of a mixed bag, though its definitely true that the good things in this movie outweigh the bad things, in the long run.

7/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

Without a doubt this was the best film I saw at the Toronto Film Festival. My girlfriend and I decided to make a trip up there for a few days to see some films, enjoy the city and catch Niagara Falls. We saw some good films, and some not-so-good films, but most of them were good... but none of them captivated us like Goodbye Solo. It was on our short list because we had seen and really liked Chop Shop-- by the same director. This one is even better. The lead actor is just amazing!! This guy is going to win some awards. He is so charming that you can't help but want to watch everything he does. The whole audience was laughing for like the first half of the film because him and the old man - the big dawg! - are just so funny together and the things they say and do together are just great... but it was the ending that really got us. My girlfriend was crying. So were a lot of people around us... And the last shots are really beautiful. I don't know where they filmed it, but the location was amazing. The mountain and the trees and fog... it was just amazing how the filmed those colors and fog, like it wasn't real or something. The film really, really moved us and stayed with us for the rest of our trip and we talked about it a lot on our drive home. Solo changed so much in the film... that guy is a great actor. We will see it again when it comes out for sure.

Ramin really used his noodle when he wrote and directed this screenplay. He drained every bit of human emotion that one could reasonably expect from several scenes of a black angel trying to save a despondent white man who could not connect with his son, a movie attendant. His son was never told who he was, and Red West, the fine actor who plays the despondent white man, does not have the courage to tell him.

So, he chooses suicide as an alternative; a really poor choice in my opinion. I know that my friend, Roger Ebert, really loved this film, and gave it his highest rating.

I like the film as well, but not so much as Roger did. It had a few holes in the screenplay that I thought should be patched up.

First and foremost is the mountain. We are built up to believe the fantasy that things go up rather than down when they come off this mountain. A few minutes of special effects would have done wonders for this film, but none were forthcoming. One had images of the old man jumping off the mountain, and then being blown up into the sky, like Christ ascending into heaven, or possibly just being blown back up onto the top of the mountain by the magical upward force that was supposed to prevail at this place. The final five minutes of the film is just not enough for this atmosphere.

Secondly, we are left with a blurred vision of what really transpired between the old man, his wife and his son. Did he abandon him at an early age? Was the son brought up in an orphanage? How did he get to point B in his life? That mystery is as unfortunate as the mountain mystery. Other than these two omissions, the film is a very nice study in the human condition, and it very refreshing to see a role for a black man where he isnt a hustler or gangster, or a professional. You can count on one hand the films where blue collar black men are featured. I enjoyed the movie, and I think you will too.

Souleyman Savane is a natural. His taxi driver character is the focus of the film and in spite of Savane's complete lack of acting experience he carries the movie with his beautiful, expressive face and the warmth, goodness and simple joie de vivre of his character's nature and, one suspects, Mr. Savane's.

The scenes of unexceptional small city life match up right for this story and the scenes toward the end in the Great Smokies are almost as transcendent as they are in person.

At 90 minutes it is the perfect length for a movie whose central predicament is made plain from the start and it's resolution never really in doubt. An understandable determination to die by one man inspires renewal in another.

I was trying all week to get these tickets for GOODBYE SOLO at the London Film Fest because I've seen both the directors previous works which had also played there- Man Push Cart and Chop Shop. As soon as the film began i became mesmerized by the seamless blend of the story and photography. Solo is a good natured cabbie from senegal, trying to balance happiness for himself as well as the responsibilities he has for his wife and daughter alex. As Solo develops a relationship with an old man, William - it hits him, he realizes this old man is going to jump off a mountain and he must save him- and his day to day responsibilities shift dramatically, creating a new world for Solo. He even brings in Alex to help him- the three make a new, simply warm friendship. I really felt for Solo and his desire to save the old man who wouldn't bend from his own path. the evolution of their relationship to the very end- made this a truly captivating and real experience you just don't get from the theaters nowadays. not only i really wanted to know what would happen next, but the first half was really funny. i mean, people were laughing out loud, which is different from ramin bahrani's other films. i absolutely recommend this film because it digs deep into you and doesn't let go for days after. I was also lucky enough that the director and the actor (whose name is also Solo) were there and i was able to personally congratulate them on their creation. that guy solo is really good. everyone was commenting on him. check this out if you get a chance.

I admit, I was very worried when I saw the trailer for this film that Bahrani had sold out or made his first bad film. I was worried this was going to be something awful like The Legend of Bagger Vance or The Bucket List. Something cheesy, sentimental, or with an angel black man who saves a white man. Thank God none of that was true! The film is sooooooo GOOD! I loved Bahrani's first two films and wish more people had seen them. But this is his best film yet and I am glad it has a wider release! The characters are real, honest, sincere and once again Bahrani manages to avoid all the normal plot devices that ruin films. Compared to Man Push Cart and Chop Shop, Goodbye Solo has a much stronger story-line and is really tense. You always want to know what happens next, but especially the last 30minutes the audience I saw it here at SXSW were rivited. AND-- it is funny! The first half of the film is really funny and I didn't expect that at all! A lot of that is the writing and directing, but a lot is the acting. That guy playing Solo is so charming he has star written all over him. His warmth and personality make the film something really special, especially next to the old man playing William. He is just perfect in the role, as if it was written for him. The movie left me feeling a little sad, but also really strong and hopeful, which sounds weird, but it's true. Its been days since I saw the film, and I saw many others at the festival, some good ones too, but this is the one that stayed with me. It is the best film I have seen all year and I will see it again when it opens in Austin.

I'm afraid I'm with the group who found this to be terribly boring. Perhaps I'm just too stupid for this sort of film-making, as I just don't get it. Character studies are one thing, but is it too much to ask that someone actually do something interesting. Drawn-out facial closeups do not an interesting movie make. After suffering through the first half-hour/forty minutes, someone actually showed some emotion in a scene I can't even remember now, and I thought I was about to see why this movie garnered such lush praise - but I was wrong. Right back to nothing happening. I don't need everything to be wrapped in a neat little package, but it would have been nice to know at least a tiny bit of what motivated the characters to act as they did. Because of this film, my girlfriend will no longer trust my movie selections. I'm lucky I'm not going "Solo".

I saw CHOP SHOP at the film forum and loved it, so when a friend told me to go see GOODBYE SOLO, I took the recommendation. SOLO was different from what I expected. It was a lot funnier than CHOP SHOP. I laughed so hard, especially in the beginning. Toward the end, things start to get a lot more emotional. It's a life-affirming film with such a subtly of power that it's haunting. Once the film was over and everything sunk in, it stayed with me, even after leaving the theater and into the night. This is proof enough that Ramin Bahrani has made something original and vital. Like in CHOP SHOP, you can feel the soul of these characters. I can't wait to see what he will be working on next. I hope these actors go up for huge awards or make great careers for themselves, and I hope that Bahrani keeps making movies as good and as sublime as this one.

Absolutely amazing. I couldn't believe it when I saw it. I had seen the preview, and thought "oh my, this is going to be a tacky indie flick." My wife (yes, I love her dearly) dragged me in to see it at SXSW (like she does so often), and I really wanted to not watch it. But from the very first minute, I was utterly captivated. I can't believe how good a small film like this can be!!! I almost cried in the end, and I felt so full of life. It's a powerful film, and I want to see everything this director has made now. The little girl did such a great job – I hope she becomes a famous actress because she deserves it. The main character was also really good, and his accent was so well acted (I even wonder if it was real?) I can't say there was a better film at SXSW this year – or any year! I've gone many times before, and this one was just shocking. I'm tempted to drive to wherever it's playing (I hear it's getting a limited release in theaters) just to see it again before it comes out on DVD. You must see this film! This director will make it big!

This movie made me wish there were an Oscar or other award for "Best Character." My friends and I were very impressed with Solo--who was a seamless blend of great writing and amazing acting.

This man can act with his eyes.

I wished I could be the character's friend so that he could experience the love that he gives to others. You won't be able to get him out of your mind.

It was really nice to see a character-driven movie that did not feel like a movie because nothing was artificially pumped up or heightened. The true story occurred during the random ordinary moments of life.