Saab in the spotlight: ‘Drive My Car’ nominated for best-picture Oscar – UPDATE

UPDATE, 8 Novebmer 2023: The Japanese Oscar-winning film Drive My Car is now available to view in Australia.

Those wanting to watch the film – which is centred around a red Saab 900 Turbo – can view it on the streaming service Stan.

UPDATE, 28 March 2022, 1:30pm: Drive My Car wins the 2022 Oscar for Best International Feature Film.

28 March 2022, 9:50am: When you think of car movies, your mind goes to thrilling chases and wild stunts, but Ryusuke Hamaguchi's Oscar-nominated Drive My Car is a far more slow-paced affair.

The Japanese film tells a story of love, loss and bonding and was adapted from a short story by Haruki Murakami called Men Without Women. What has this got to do with cars (aside from the title), you ask?

One of the film's principal characters, and a device integral to the plot, is a red Saab 900 Turbo.

The Saab is depicted as much a character in the film as the actors are, and is the location where much of the character connections are made and developed.

Centred around a theatre director and his appointed chauffeur, who drives his car (the Saab) for him, the film uses the car as a sanctuary, a place where the principal characters, confined for long periods of time, are able to talk and work through their grief and relationships.

True to form, the car is introduced as a character with challenges and flaws, and a gradual bond is formed not only between the actors, but with the car.

Even the story on which the film was based featured a Saab, although that was a yellow 900 Cabrio. The director chose the red Turbo to allow the colour to contrast with the multi-season locations of Hiroshima, Japan used in the production.

Watch the trailer below.

The film, which has already three awards at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, has been nominated for four Academy Awards (Best Picture, Best Director, Best International Feature and Best Adapted Screenplay).

The 2022 Academy Awards start at 11am today, and you can catch a screening of Drive My Car at many independent cinemas around the country.

We'll let you know how it goes!