Driveways movie storyline. Cody’s summer begins with a road trip. Accompanying his mother Kathy, he travels to the house where his late aunt used to live. While Kathy is busy cleaning out the place, the almost nine-year-old has to pass the time on his own in the unfamiliar neighbourhood. The boy’s first encounter with old Del from next door marks the start of a special friendship.
The loveable 83-year-old grouch has a whole life to look back on. Del’s companionship causes Cody to blossom: he begins to open himself to the outside world and set aside his fears. In return, he gives the widowed veteran solace and reminds him how much fun life can be. Full of warm humour and casual levity, their friendship leaves no aspect of life untouched. In the end, a new journey awaits.
Driveways is a 2019 American drama film directed by Andrew Ahn and starring Hong Chau, Lucas Jaye, and Brian Dennehy, based on an original screenplay by playwrights Hannah Bos and Paul Thureen. The film had its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 10, and its American premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 30. FilmRise released it on video on demand in the United States on May 7, 2020, prior to its theatrical release due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It tells the story of a woman who comes to her late sister’s house to pack it up and prepare it for sale. There, he befriends an elderly widow whose young son lives next door.
The film received critical acclaim and was nominated for Best First Screenplay and Best Actress at the 2020 Film Independent Spirit Awards. Praise focused on two primary aspects of the film: its depiction of the bonds between neighbors, something many missed due to social distancing measures taken to contain the pandemic, and Dennehy’s performance. He had died a month before its release, and critics said it was the perfect final film for him.
For his second feature, Ahn chose Bos and Thureen’s script, derived from their childhood in the Midwest, due to his desire to direct an intimate family drama not written by himself. He also wanted to move away from the gay Korean American milieu in which his first film, Spa Night, was set, but later changed the two main characters from white to Asian for artistic reasons. Maven Pictures supported the production, and filming took place in the summer of 2018 in New York’s Hudson Valley region, specifically around Poughkeepsie.
Directed by: Andrew Ahn
Starring: Hong Chau, Lucas Jaye, Brian Dennehy, Christine Ebersole, Jerry Adler, Stan Carp, Bill Buell, Robyn Payne, Samantha Jones, Sophia DeStefano, Jeter Rivera, Jack Caleb, James DiGiacomo
Screenplay by: Hannah Bos, Paul Thureen
Production Design by: Charlotte Royer
Cinematography by: Ki Jin Kim
Film Editing by: Katherine McQuerry
Costume Design by: Matthew Simonelli
Set Decoration by: Becca Morrin
Art Direction by: Kelley Lutter
Music by: Jay Wadley
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: FilmRise (United States)
Release Date: February 10. 2019 (Berlinale), May 7, 2020 (United States)
Driveways, Driveways 2019, Hong Chau, Lucas Jaye, Brian Dennehy, Christine Ebersole, Jerry Adler, Stan Carp, Bill Buell, Robyn Payne, Samantha Jones, Sophia DeStefano, Jeter Rivera, Jack Caleb, James DiGiacomo
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