The Driver is a virtual remake of Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Samouraï. This simple fact explains a lot: the characters without names (The Driver, Ryan O'Neal; The Cop, Bruce Dern; The Player, Isabelle Adjani; other characters named Glasses, Teeth, Fingers, and The Connection); the script, practically devoid of dialogue; the non-scenery; the bizarre, ultra-modern police station; and finally, the plot. None of the above were particularly understood or appreciated by critics at the time of the film's release, but then, the austere visuals and impassive characters of the Melville policier were almost unknown here. The plot revolves around a getaway-car driver who is pursued by a ruthless, philosophical cop. Both are compulsive professionals, but where O'Neal is laconic, Dern is manic-electric. "The chases are the very best ever seen, Ryan O'Neal wears dark glasses at night and, as Time Out remarked, everyone looks like they haven't slept for weeks. A fine genuflection to the master" (NFT).