“Seat belt first” is a mantra repeated by driving instructor Darwin during LEARNING TO DRIVE  a new film from Spanish Director Isabel Coixet, but this gentle, funny film is not a wild ride.  It’s not BULLITT.  It’s an intimate, closeup look at mutual friendship which develops slowly from an accidental meeting of complete opposites.

Darwin (Ben Kingsley) is a Sikh driving instructor and taxi driver in New York.  That’s a pressure existence but Darwin is self-contained and overtly stress-free.  Into his cab gets Wendy (Patricia Clarkson) and her husband Ted (Jake Weber) and Ted chooses this moment to end the marriage leaving a bewildered, unbelieving Wendy for Darwin to drive her back to her now empty house.

You have to admire a middle aged woman who can use ‘cocksucker’ with aplomb and appropriateness! But as a book reviewer, she is a wordsmith.  Later, when under pressure from her daughter Tasha (Grace Gummer), she enlists the help of Darwin to teach her to drive.  Wendy  toots a mean horn, too.

Darwin is on the verge of entering an arranged marriage with Jasleen (Sarita Choudrey).  He attends temple regularly, is a US citizen on a political refugee status and lives with a group of illegal immigrants from the same community including his nephew, Preet (Avi Nash).  Preet gives him a hard time and their relationship is warm and comic.

This is a really funny film.  Clarkson’s Wendy is hilarious in her miserable moments and yet pathetically knowable in her desperate ones.  Clarkson is a journeyman actor.  She has won many awards, mostly for character and supporting or guest roles on TV, film and in ELEPHANT MAN on Broadway.  Not really thought of a leading lady, she shines here.  The vulnerability of a woman who did not see her marriage decaying and the inner strength to embrace change is beautifully balanced.  She is a delight to watch.

She is well matched by Ben Kinsley who is entertainingly buttoned down as the turban clad Darwin.  Despite the accent this is not a reprise of GHANDI.  His Darwin is witty and kind and as his stronger feelings for Wendy develop we understand the effort he makes to be the man he wants to be for his newly arrived bride.

Not that this is a romantic film, it’s in that vague new genre of  Dramedy and quite a departure for Director Coixet who is better known for a certain amount of suicide and destruction.  She worked with Clarkson and Kingsley on ELEGY .

Here she has surrounded herself with a stellar crew including Dhani Harrison and Paul Hicks (thenewno2) who also scored BEAUTIFUL CREATURES.  They have composed the score to blend seamlessly under the dialogue.  Their soaring, flowing music over the final driving sequence is just lovely and sums up all Wendy’s hope for the future.

The cinematography by Manel Ruiz, in his feature film debut, gives this film its intimate nature.  There are virtually no long shots.  One when Wendy freaks out about crossing a bridge but even during a drive in the autumn countryside the frame is reduced by trees and little towns and the sky is secondary to the road just ahead.

There are lots of shots of faces in cars: moving cars; cars at lights; cars parked and so on.  This could be pretty boring in lesser hands than Ruiz and Coixet.  Sometimes the windscreen has reflections over the protagonist’s faces and the sense of movement is dynamic.  Sometimes the side window is down as we see the open face of a character who a minute ago was hidden behind an visual echo of the person speaking to him.   This is a film about people and the shot choices pull you into their world.

And that is a compassionate, funny and life affirming world.

LEARNING TO DRIVE opens in cinemas next Thursday,