How do you define Los Angeles?

[VZN]

L.A. Story: 'Drive' Director Nicolas Winding Refn on His Quintessential Los Angeles Film

Finally out now after weeks of advance hype, 'Drive' tells the story of an unnamed stunt driver (Ryan Gosling) who moonlights as a wheelman-for-hire, navigating criminals through the streets of Los Angeles while armed only with his wheels and his killer tunes. If it sounds like a story that could only happen in Hollywood, it is: from an opening chase scene that ends at the Staples Center to a closing confrontation at a Chinese restaurant in the Valley, 'Drive' puts the Los Angeles you don't normally see on film front-and-center. For director Nicolas Winding Refn, that was totally intentional.

"What's interesting about L.A. is that it's an incredible visual and beautiful city, but it doesn't have -- for example -- it's own niche like New York films have," the director told Moviefone. "Some very interesting filmmakers use New York's background so iconically that it almost becomes a character in the movie. L.A. doesn't have that as much, so it was almost -- for me -- much more unknown territory. Which was interesting because it makes you more creative. It's like being a stranger in a stranger's land."

Refn was that stranger before 'Drive': He never lived in Los Angeles, and found shooting locations during night drives with star Ryan Gosling. As such, the Denmark-born filmmaker didn't have specific L.A. films in mind while making 'Drive,' though at least one has stood out recently.

"I think in terms of both the movie and using the city -- so vital and so interestingly -- I would say probably a movie like 'Thief,'" Refn said, recalling the 1980 Michael Mann film which he saw for the first time a couple of months back. ('Thief' bounds from Chicago to Los Angeles.)

"What I like about Michael Mann is that Michael Mann reminds me very much of a Western director. He would make Westerns, I feel. He would use the landscape of L.A. like a Western. He's always been very good at photographing L.A. like L.A. should be seen. As a unique place. It was always hard to define L.A. because it doesn't have the same familiarity that other urban cities have, like New York, Paris, London, Rome. They have a lot of things in common, whereas L.A. is unique."

Which makes you wonder why more directors haven't decided to take advantage of the wonders that exist in Hollywood's backyard. All of the films Refn highlighted as successful L.A. stories -- 'Thief,' 'Shampoo,' 'Short Cuts,' and 'Live and Die in L.A.' -- are from a bygone era of moviemaking.

"Unfortunately, it all has to do with money and tax breaks," said the director, disappointedly. "One of my conditions [for 'Drive'] was that we had to shoot the movie in L.A. If we shot the movie in Detroit, I would have almost double the amount of budget."

Don't expect Refn to get as lucky with his planned reboot of 'Logan's Run.' "That's a tax thing," he said when asked if 'Run' would shoot in Los Angeles. "That's Warner Bros. decision. Unfortunately, it's not even creative. It's a tax decision. If you can believe it, movies have become about tax decisions."

'Drive' is out now. For more on Refn and his relationship with star Ryan Gosling, watch the latest edition of Moviefone Unscripted.

[1772]

LA is chilly winters, smog, clustered highways and angry separatist La Raza-mexicans booing the US Soccer team...

But, there is also nice partys at Beverly Hills houses, great clubs, hot chics...

But I prefer my Miami any day of the week.

[Mojeda101]

The perfect place to be.

Cold Winters.
Hot Summers.

30 minutes from the beach, 30 minutes from the mountains, and about an hour to the desert.

[pesto]

Originally Posted by 1772

LA is chilly winters, smog, clustered highways and angry separatist La Raza-mexicans booing the US Soccer team...

But, there is also nice partys at Beverly Hills houses, great clubs, hot chics...

But I prefer my Miami any day of the week.

Wow; that's kind of sad.

[LANative]

Pesto, what do you expect from someone that's from Miami? And I'm sure people from SF, New York, Chicago, Seattle would agree with 1772 or say the same thing unfortunetely. Compared to those other (and more respected) cities I mentioned, L.A. is just not respected as a city.

[milquetoast]

"SO, SOMEONE REALLY TELL ME HOW LA IS,
SOMEONE WHO LIVES THERE." - MiSTaR T

SO YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW WHAT LOS ANGELES IS LIKE ...

ROCCOSTUDIO.NET

.

Los Angeles is a mind blowing trip, man! Just when you think you've got it made,

YOU'RE DEAD!

Other than that, it's people trying to make the rent, people trying to get ahead just like anywhere else, but with one caveat:

.

THAT YOU ARE AT THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE!

.

Ahhhh, which means you'll have to deal with a big city, as big as any you'll ever know, only you'll have to share it with the most dangerous idiots and impossibly good looking freaks that you've ever seen! You'll have to drive a car, and you'll have to figure out who to share this place with. It's not the greatest city on earth (That would be either London or Tokyo) but it is the single greatest place on earth, and finding someone decent here who isn't caught up in their situation is extremely hard.

.

When you get time off of work, if you can find it, you'll have to look for a home that doesn't start at $2000 a month, or a house that doesn't list at $300,000. When you've accomplished this, get a job that's at least 30 miles near your home. This is where the car comes in handy. Ask the people at work what to do here, but don't cling - as they really don't need anymore friends. They're too caught up with their backyard or home improvement projects to be interested in you at this early stage. Over time, say, 20 years, you'll figure out where you are and where you stand. You'll have been to the beach at least 5 times, been to one of the 200 museums at least 10 times and gotten confirmed reservations in any halfway decent restaurant 15 times (valet is a must!)

.

Like I mentioned before, if you survive the punks, (and it's not worth impressing a girl you'll know maybe 5 minutes tops- ditch the girl and save yourself!), you'll have to contend with the most beautiful people in the world! So you had better work out often! Nothing too heavy, just be consistent. That way, you'll know you'll be somewhat tolerable, but you'll never be good looking enough!

.

And the weather isn't to complicated.

We do have seasons: Fire Season, Flood Season and everything else.
Santa Anas go hand in hand with Fire Season, but that's about it.
It gets cool at night but it's almost never cold at anytime of year. It's usually around 77 degrees on New Year's Day. In June it's usually overcast until around 11 AM, (June Gloom), and then it burns off to reveal yet another beautiful day! And Beautiful days here are livingroom weather, meaning: It's more comfortable outside than on your couch.

That's why people seem slow paced.
Not in their day to day activities, because it's a madhouse, but in their attitude. The weather can put you to sleep. It ain't fucking Miami, where the humidity keeps you on call for a cage at the zoo, and the bugs are bigger than Marc Anthony .....

this is what you call ideal weather, second only to San Diego.

.

The one thing that keeps you on your toes is what slips your mind in order to go about living your life,

and that is our upcoming real-life disaster movie!
It's under our feet every second, and it is exciting when you think about it! You never know when you're gonna die! So, you live it up!

.

No, I don't live there anymore. The one bad thing about the weather? If you have nothing going on in your life the great weather just magnifies that aspect of your existence!

It was about 72 degrees yesterday, so it's not like in New York, where everyone shares in the misery of their weather. Our weather will expose you as a failure if you are one. It's not like everyone else is suffering. You are missing out!

So, don't fail.

.

If you're visiting you had better be here for long distance driving and dealing with people who are going exactly where you're going! This city is actually bigger than the sum of its parts. There's a few pockets of skyscrapers and that's it! You're not here for them.

You're here for the lifestyle, which is unmatched.

[croyboy]

Originally Posted by milquetoast

"SO, SOMEONE REALLY TELL ME HOW LA IS,
SOMEONE WHO LIVES THERE." - MiSTaR T

SO YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW WHAT LOS ANGELES IS LIKE ...

ROCCOSTUDIO.NET

.

Los Angeles is a mind blowing trip, man! Just when you think you've got it made,

YOU'RE DEAD!

Other than that, it's people trying to make the rent, people trying to get ahead just like anywhere else, but with one caveat:

.

THAT YOU ARE AT THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE!

.

Ahhhh, which means you'll have to deal with a big city, as big as any you'll ever know, only you'll have to share it with the most dangerous idiots and impossibly good looking freaks that you've ever seen! You'll have to drive a car, and you'll have to figure out who to share this place with. It's not the greatest city on earth (That would be either London or Tokyo) but it is the single greatest place on earth, and finding someone decent here who isn't caught up in their situation is extremely hard.

.

When you get time off of work, if you can find it, you'll have to look for a home that doesn't start at $2000 a month, or a house that doesn't list at $300,000. When you've accomplished this, get a job that's at least 30 miles near your home. This is where the car comes in handy. Ask the people at work what to do here, but don't cling - as they really don't need anymore friends. They're too caught up with their backyard or home improvement projects to be interested in you at this early stage. Over time, say, 20 years, you'll figure out where you are and where you stand. You'll have been to the beach at least 5 times, been to one of the 200 museums at least 10 times and gotten confirmed reservations in any halfway decent restaurant 15 times (valet is a must!)

.

Like I mentioned before, if you survive the punks, (and it's not worth impressing a girl you'll know maybe 5 minutes tops- ditch the girl and save yourself!), you'll have to contend with the most beautiful people in the world! So you had better work out often! Nothing too heavy, just be consistent. That way, you'll know you'll be somewhat tolerable, but you'll never be good looking enough!

.

And the weather isn't to complicated.

We do have seasons: Fire Season, Flood Season and everything else.
Santa Anas go hand in hand with Fire Season, but that's about it.
It gets cool at night but it's almost never cold at anytime of year. It's usually around 77 degrees on New Year's Day. In June it's usually overcast until around 11 AM, (June Gloom), and then it burns off to reveal yet another beautiful day! And Beautiful days here are livingroom weather, meaning: It's more comfortable outside than on your couch.

That's why people seem slow paced.
Not in their day to day activities, because it's a madhouse, but in their attitude. The weather can put you to sleep. It ain't fucking Miami, where the humidity keeps you on call for a cage at the zoo, and the bugs are bigger than Marc Anthony .....

this is what you call ideal weather, second only to San Diego.

.

The one thing that keeps you on your toes is what slips your mind in order to go about living your life,

and that is our upcoming real-life disaster movie!
It's under our feet every second, and it is exciting when you think about it! You never know when you're gonna die! So, you live it up!

.

No, I don't live there anymore. The one bad thing about the weather? If you have nothing going on in your life the great weather just magnifies that aspect of your existence!

It was about 72 degrees yesterday, so it's not like in New York, where everyone shares in the misery of their weather. Our weather will expose you as a failure if you are one. It's not like everyone else is suffering. You are missing out!

So, don't fail.

.

If you're visiting you had better be here for long distance driving and dealing with people who are going exactly where you're going! This city is actually bigger than the sum of its parts. There's a few pockets of skyscrapers and that's it! You're not here for them.

You're here for the lifestyle, which is unmatched.

sounds like brentwood actually.. i see l.a. as more like 1/3 driving, 1/3 bus and train, 1/3 walking (for each individual's commute choice on average). valet?.. yeah, like a couple times per year.

finding rent below $2000 is easy (studio/one-bedroom) but tight availability around $1000. working more than 30 miles away is not a good idea since the same type of work is at your nearest commercially developed area (pocketed everywhere). finding friends is hard for outsiders, because everyone here is already set from elementary school. we just don't trust anyone. you're probly gonna make a group of friends that are from any u.s. state like all the other visitors coming here.

the people here are more amazingly beautiful than anywhere, but there also very ugly ones (not likely born that way). i feel plastic surgery isn't as popular as it used to be.

you're more likely NOT gonna have a yard to take care of. maybe a cemented patio to sweep or just a sidewalk. bigger places might have a shared courtyard or whatever.

you'll probly go to the beach 10 times in any ONE year and maybe a different museum just as often. no matter how often tho, you can't possibly visit all of these places in your life (unless you really have nothing important to do and can afford to be away that long).

fires and mudslides? never ever had to worry about them. earthquakes are easy: ignore them (but if it's crazy (happens once ever 10-20 years), find an archway or just be outside).

weather here is awesome and i would actually say better than san diego's when the sun goes down.

and it's not dangerous here unless you're stupid (just like everywhere else).

[isaidso]

- Gorgeous topography
- Self absorbed and superficial
- No winter, no autumn
- Expensive
- Too much income inequality
- Culturally influential
- Inaccessible without a car

[croyboy]

inaccessible without a car only if you plan on surfing and snow-skiing in the same day and also trekking out to disneyland.. you can do fine without a car and within reasonable time for the most part.

superficial?.. like i said: brentwood

you'll find pretty much anything you'll wanna find here

[dennis911]

Great.

I define it as all 5 counties. Santa Paula to San Clemente and Los Angeles to Beaumont.

[croyboy]

sure but you're not gonna live in all places at once. id say once you leave l.a. county (excluding palmdale/lancaster) it gets tougher to live without a car. you can actually still take transit to disneyland (460 bus).

[dennis911]

Originally Posted by croyboy

sure but you're not gonna live in all places at once. id say once you leave l.a. county (excluding palmdale/lancaster) it gets tougher to live without a car. you can actually still take transit to disneyland (460 bus).

Really? Cool.

I honestly want to go to LA imo. I need a change.

[VZN]

Advice on moving to Los Angeles

I lived in LA from 2002 to 2009 and loved it. There are a few things to understand:

It’s not really a city. Not long ago, it was just a bunch of small towns: Venice, Pasadena, Burbank, Encino, Beverly Hills - but then for tax reasons they drew a circle around about 30 small towns and decided to call it Los Angeles. So if you go just understanding it’s a bunch of adjacent towns, each quite different in character, and don’t go expecting a city, then it won’t be so frustrating. When someone says they hate LA, you have to ask, “Which neighborhood?” Because Santa Monica is not like Silverlake is not like Van Nuys is not like Hollywood, but they’re all inside that circle called LA. It’s completely de-centralized. (And “downtown” is just another neighborhood. It's not the center of things, like most cities. Most people have no need to go there.)

Americans are already quite individualist, but Los Angeles is the most individualist part of America. Because so many people are employed by the entertainment industry, many are self-employed freelancers. They’re very focused on themselves. People talk about themselves a lot because they feel they have to, for survival, for self-promotion. Just as you can’t fault anyone in the world for doing something for survival, try not to fault them for being so self-promotional. Learn to lovingly listen like you’d listen to an 8-year-old who excitedly tells you about their train set for an hour.

You know you need a car, but you also need to use it to go exploring, the way you’d go on a random walk in London, strolling down streets you’ve never seen. Do this in your car, and stop and get out in different places that seem interesting. Most of the best parts of LA are on little side-streets you’d never run across. Avoid the highways and take the backroads, for this reason. (Get GPS so you can always do this fearlessly.) Find Little Tokyo, Topanga Canyon, Eagle Rock, etc.

Get into nature often. Go hiking up in the hills. Go hiking in Will Rogers State Park in Pacfic Palisades, the beach in Malibu. East to Palm Springs, etc. It’s all so close.

Every culture values different things. In some places, it’s your bloodline. In others, your university. In others, it’s where you live. In LA, it’s who you know. Since the entertainment industry is all about short-term projects, everyone survives by their next project, and these projects always come from a connection. So everyone is collecting contacts. (Again: it’s survival.) Friendships are pragmatic and often short. Don’t fault them for talking about who they know, the same way you wouldn’t fault someone from India asking about your family. Introducing people to each other, people who could potentially work together, is the most valuable thing you can do, as it raises your value and theirs. LA people want (NEED!) to have powerful well-connected friends, to survive and thrive.

Not just LA but California is the most optimistic place on earth. The side-effects of this can confuse outsiders. When you say, “Will you come to my event?” or, “Want to help with this project?” - they will almost always say yes, full of enthusiasm, and actually 100% sincere, fully intending to be there, to help, whatever. They honestly and optimistically think that they will be there and do it. They have the best of intentions. But when it actually comes to that time, and they’ve optimistically said “yes!” to a dozen other things too, or perhaps they’re just nestled in the comfort of their California home, then... well... they reluctantly “flake” - and won’t follow through. Don’t get bitter and write them off as fake, or backstabbers. Just understand that it’s a side-effect of sincere optimism, and adjust your expectations accordingly.

As with any place, if you really want to experience it, don’t just sneer and condemn it, dive in and live it like a local. (Most people are from somewhere else anyway, so you're just as local as they are, now.) Drive around the different neighborhoods. Be totally optimistic. Aim to meet as many people as possible, and get something out of your short-lived friendships. Introduce them to each other. Have lots and lots of lunches, and enjoy the conversations. Go to the beach and hike in the hills.

It may feel fake, but faking it is fine. (Kurt Vonnegut wrote, “You are whatever you pretend to be.”) If you throw yourself into it whole-heartedly for a while, you’ll learn something useful from it, and have it as a great life experience, as you go back to whatever culture feels a better fit for the real you.

The article and the comments themselves are interesting.

[PinkFloyd]

Originally Posted by 1772

LA is chilly winters, smog, clustered highways and angry separatist La Raza-mexicans booing the US Soccer team...

It's called sports. I guess Miami Heat fans are angry separatist basketball nazis for booing the Thunder...

[klamedia]

I like the article about LA, I would say it is fairly accurate. I would quip about the car bit though. Not having owned a car now for over 4 years my quality of life in LA has risen exponentially. What is sorely needed as the city continues to evolve are more car-shares and taxis on the street since honestly not all of the core is serviced by rail. But all in all a delightful and interesting read about a city that is very hard to explain.

[VZN]

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, LA's Local Boy, Talks Favorite Theaters, Freaking Out And Singing In The Car

I am a third-generation Angeleno. My grandpa grew up in South-Central, and my grandma grew up in Boyle Heights. When they were young, South-Central was a Jewish ghetto, and Western was the western edge of L.A. They had a soda pop wagon, but I think they made most of their money selling liquor during Prohibition. My grandpa started working when he was 12. He was a hustler. I get a lot of my work ethic from him. He used to take the Red Car, and he remembers when it got dismantled. It’s fascinating to me: How different would L.A. be if public transportation had been allowed to flourish? We’d probably be a more classically designed city, spend less time in cars, and all be happier. I love old Los Angeles. If you watch the brilliant Charlie Chaplin movie City Lights, you don’t think of it as L.A. because it looks so urbane and gorgeous and art deco, but it is. It’s downtown L.A. That’s sort of the neighborhood where we made a lot of (500) Days of Summer. We now have a plaque at that park near Angels Flight.

I grew up in Sherman Oaks, and I went to Van Nuys High. The Valley is a hybrid of two worlds. On the one hand, it’s a lot like every suburb everywhere in the country. But I also got the benefit of a huge metropolis with all that culture: music, food, movies, people. In New York the suburbs are distinct from the city, whereas L.A. is one big sprawling mess, so there’s not as big a separation between the Valley and more cool urban pockets.

I live in Silver Lake now. Looper’s director, Rian Johnson, and I are neighbors. We hang out at each other’s house or we go out to eat, although Rian can cook pretty well. Looper is the first time anyone has written a part for me. When Rian handed me a draft of the script, we were at Du-par’s eating steak and eggs. I waited until I got home to read it. When I did, I thought, “This is brilliant.”

I basically like to watch movies and eat. Of all the cities I’ve been to, Los Angeles has some of the best cinemas. You’ve got the New Beverly, the Nuart, and the Egyptian. It’s funny to have such a dignified cinematheque amid all the Hollywood mishegoss. Growing up, my cinema was Laemmle’s Sunset 5. When I was 16 and got my license, I would drive over Laurel Canyon to see anything that was playing there: Sling Blade, Big Night, Trees Lounge, Daytrippers. I saw Swingers there—twice. I went with my buddy from high school. We were so stoked about the movie, we went back in and saw it again immediately afterward. Spending time in the world of twentysomething guys who are on the prowl for chicks—that’s what you dream of doing when you’re 16. Plus it’s a great movie.

I lived in New York for nine years, and I decided to move back to L.A. because I like having a space where I can just freak out if I want to. I have a house where I can yell at the top of my lungs. In New York, if you start singing at the top of your lungs, no matter where you are on the island of Manhattan, someone’s going to hear you. Another virtue of Los Angeles is getting to sing in the car. I miss that when I’m out of town. Even though the traffic’s a bitch, it’s nice to have such a private environment to listen to music.

Los Angeles is a hard city to show to people because I think what’s charming about it are the people. It’s not like New York or Paris, where I’ll take you to this great neighborhood and we’ll walk around and it’s gorgeous. L.A. doesn’t really have that. When friends are in town, what I’m excited to do is introduce them to other friends of mine, and that usually happens at someone’s house. When you’re in New York City, you’re in New York City, and it defines a lot of your experience. But when you’re in L.A., you can make your own experience. There’s so much more space, you have the room to make your own world.

[losangelino]

Originally Posted by 1772

LA is chilly winters, smog, clustered highways and angry separatist La Raza-mexicans booing the US Soccer team...

But, there is also nice partys at Beverly Hills houses, great clubs, hot chics...

But I prefer my Miami any day of the week.

Just left Miami, and I said the exact opposite. No mountains and humid. No place I'd ever want to live. Seemed festive though!