The Driver's Red Nightmare
It is obviously hard for me (or anyone) not to talk about Drive
when writing a review about Only God Forgives. There are apparent similarities to the movies. For one thing, Only God Forgives marks the return of the grand trio Refn-Gosling-Martinez 2 years after the universally-acclaimed Drive. Ryan Gosling is Julian, a narco-trafficker covering up as a boxing-club owner and hiding in Thailand. When his older brother gets killed after raping and slaughtering a 15-year-old girl, their mom flies from the USA to claim the corpse of her first-born son and get revenge. Kristin Scott Thomas, the mother, is a sensational addition to the cast. I am thrilled to see her in the role of a merciless mafia godmother. It is unusual and surprising in her career. She is definitely persuasive. You will find similar aerial city shots at night in both movies. And similar character features: Nicolas Winding Refn sure likes his muse to be quiet and plots about revenge. On a different note, he also explores an odd fascination for hands and thighs in this feature film. There is one major thing I find drastically different from Drive. While you root for the driver and his quest to make things right, you can't really support Julian since his nemesis (Vithaya Pansringarm) is kind of the actual hero and good guy of the story. I am extremely satisfied with the original score
composed by Cliff Martinez who already created Drive's one
. His input is like a rumble of thunder seasoned with bits of peaceful melody. It replaces some of the dialogue and most of the screams. The score is a fully-fledged cast member. This extremely violent movie keeps its cool thanks to the music and Refn's use of slow motion, and silence. The director makes a clear theme choice with the pervasive color red. This oppressing red color is smoothed by the slow and silent journey of the main character and his nemesis. In addition, most of the cast and the entire crew are locals from Thailand. I think it's a precious and respectful directorial commitment. From the poisonous relationship between Julian and his mother to the rare way Thailand is shown, I perceive Only God Forgives to be a future classic reference.
when writing a review about Only God Forgives. There are apparent similarities to the movies. For one thing, Only God Forgives marks the return of the grand trio Refn-Gosling-Martinez 2 years after the universally-acclaimed Drive. Ryan Gosling is Julian, a narco-trafficker covering up as a boxing-club owner and hiding in Thailand. When his older brother gets killed after raping and slaughtering a 15-year-old girl, their mom flies from the USA to claim the corpse of her first-born son and get revenge. Kristin Scott Thomas, the mother, is a sensational addition to the cast. I am thrilled to see her in the role of a merciless mafia godmother. It is unusual and surprising in her career. She is definitely persuasive. You will find similar aerial city shots at night in both movies. And similar character features: Nicolas Winding Refn sure likes his muse to be quiet and plots about revenge. On a different note, he also explores an odd fascination for hands and thighs in this feature film. There is one major thing I find drastically different from Drive. While you root for the driver and his quest to make things right, you can't really support Julian since his nemesis (Vithaya Pansringarm) is kind of the actual hero and good guy of the story. I am extremely satisfied with the original score
composed by Cliff Martinez who already created Drive's one. His input is like a rumble of thunder seasoned with bits of peaceful melody. It replaces some of the dialogue and most of the screams. The score is a fully-fledged cast member. This extremely violent movie keeps its cool thanks to the music and Refn's use of slow motion, and silence. The director makes a clear theme choice with the pervasive color red. This oppressing red color is smoothed by the slow and silent journey of the main character and his nemesis. In addition, most of the cast and the entire crew are locals from Thailand. I think it's a precious and respectful directorial commitment. From the poisonous relationship between Julian and his mother to the rare way Thailand is shown, I perceive Only God Forgives to be a future classic reference.
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