2/4
This movie is as shallow and pornographic as it gets. Nicolas Winding Refn crafts his revenge-fantasy film out of a quiet Ryan Gosling character, weird Bangkok imagery and senseless violence (which is insane, and is the best part of the movie).
Only God Forgives has much of what made Drive great--- the epic brutality, the surrealism, the electro-dance music, the slow-motion, the mysteriousness of Gosling's character... but what it's fatally missing is the heart and the light that Drive had. I remember loving Gosling's character in that movie. He was a "real human being, and a real hero", as the song goes. Only God Forgives takes the cheap aspects of that character and trashes the soul. In fact, nobody in this film is human. There is no heart to this movie, and no connection with the audience, so that the only thing we hope to see happen is not success or redemption for a character we love, but rather more brutality, because we know that's all Refn is going to give us.
If there was more violence, I would have liked the movie more. What I didn't like is watching the devil-character sing cheesy Thai-pop songs, or watching the mother speak in her vulgar American terms. What I'm saying is, if Refn is going to go to these extremes of violence and mystique, I'd rather he went all the way and didn't try to do anything else with the movie, like develop a disturbing mother-son relationship, or give Gosling's character any sort of personality. It's wasted energy.
I guess what is interesting is Julian's sense of morality. He won't kill the man that murdered his brother if he feels that the man was justified, and he would kill his partner over a child. He makes clear moral decisions. But yet, he would cut open the stomach of his dead mother and stick his hand inside. He clearly has an ultimate affection toward her, probably over anything in the world. When Mai disrespects her, he screams maniacally.
The film is cool in some ways, and at 89 minutes it's worth putting in one's catalogue, but beyond that there's not much to be had.
Only God Forgives has much of what made Drive great--- the epic brutality, the surrealism, the electro-dance music, the slow-motion, the mysteriousness of Gosling's character... but what it's fatally missing is the heart and the light that Drive had. I remember loving Gosling's character in that movie. He was a "real human being, and a real hero", as the song goes. Only God Forgives takes the cheap aspects of that character and trashes the soul. In fact, nobody in this film is human. There is no heart to this movie, and no connection with the audience, so that the only thing we hope to see happen is not success or redemption for a character we love, but rather more brutality, because we know that's all Refn is going to give us.
If there was more violence, I would have liked the movie more. What I didn't like is watching the devil-character sing cheesy Thai-pop songs, or watching the mother speak in her vulgar American terms. What I'm saying is, if Refn is going to go to these extremes of violence and mystique, I'd rather he went all the way and didn't try to do anything else with the movie, like develop a disturbing mother-son relationship, or give Gosling's character any sort of personality. It's wasted energy.
I guess what is interesting is Julian's sense of morality. He won't kill the man that murdered his brother if he feels that the man was justified, and he would kill his partner over a child. He makes clear moral decisions. But yet, he would cut open the stomach of his dead mother and stick his hand inside. He clearly has an ultimate affection toward her, probably over anything in the world. When Mai disrespects her, he screams maniacally.
The film is cool in some ways, and at 89 minutes it's worth putting in one's catalogue, but beyond that there's not much to be had.
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