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Now THIS is a Danish filmmaker we should all be discussing right. Hot off the ultra cool Drive, Winding is set to tackle, Muay Thai, sex tourism, vengeance and, of course, extreme violence in his second collboration with The Gosling and his 10th feature length film, Only God Forgives.
Winding Refn made his debut in the mid 90’s (my favourite decade of cinema) with the crime drama, Pusher. It’s the tale of Frank, a lower level drug ‘pusher’ who finds himself in increasingly desperate situations when he is forced to pay a debt back to his boss, Croatian drug lord, Milo. Shot on a micro budget in Denmark, the film has seemingly been tagged with the ‘Tarantinoesque’ tag, but I would say that it’s a world away from Tarantino’s. As the Refn meister himself has said, ‘his films aren’t about crime, but people in a criminal environment’.
Refn followed up Pusher with Bleeder. A very brutal tale of the horrors men are capable of and their inability to commit to the opposite sex. It’s not as well known as Pusher, nor is it as accessible, but it’s message regarding these themes penetrate without pretentiousness.
Fear X, his first US film, is another one of his more underrated efforts. It stars John Turtturo, as a security man who investigates his wife’s mysterious death. It’s a well constructed thriller that firmly shows the unhealthy nature of obsession. It didn’t do well commercially, and it even bankrupted Refn’s own production company, but it’s still a must see if you’re a fan of Refn.
Returning to his roots, Refn decided to film Pusher's 2 and 3 back-to-back, with great results. Pusher 2 is my favourite of the trilogy, a sly oedipal tale starring a tremendous Mads Mikkelsen (who’s character had been upgraded to lead from a smaller role in the original film) as Toni, arguably the most foolish criminal you’ve ever seen on a film that isn’t a comedy - as well as the most redemptive. At least for me. This film, unlike the other two, hints at hope amongst the grime and horrors or urban life in Copenhagen.
After completing his trilogy, Refn went on to direct Bronson, Miss Marple tv movie (???), Valhalla Rising and, of course, Drive. I think that he is the most exciting filmmaker who isn’t Christopher Nolan working in the industry today. This is a man who is still finding himself and growing with each film, for better or for worse.
Refn’s characters are flawed anti heros. And by that I mean REAL genuine anti heros. Ryan Gosling’s nameless driver is as close to a good bloke as you’ll see in a Refn film, and even he has suppressed brutality in him. All these anti hero’s resolutions are as ambiguous as the men themselves. Kim Bodnia’s Frank is left pondering whether to run or face the music at the end of Pusher. Milo (Pusher 3’s protagonist) finds himself in a similar spot to that of Frank, the man who owes money to him, and his fate and stance in the criminal underworld is questioned after disposing of a nastier gang of Albanians near the film’s climax. It’s not clear whether Driver survived the ending of Drive. The direction of these people is never clear.
Bronson, based on the infamous crook from Luton, is a summary of a hard man who, through books and other mediums, has suggested that he has lead a threatrical life and exciting life, although that last lingering shot in the film would suggest otherwise. He’s another of Refn’s anti heros who commands revulsion and interest at the same time.
For me, his best films are Drive and Pusher 2. All the others range from interesting to great. Valhalla Rising, a film that commands a deeper thought process of symbolic images, is a film I need to see again. Visually, it truly is a work of art, but I have not taken the time to consider what I saw beyond that.
This is the interesting thing about Refn, he has a fatherless filmmaking style as far as aesthetics goes. He started out with that frenetic paced cinema verite, handheld style about urban gang culture in grimy city areas, yet his latter films have been slow moving, slow building, more contemplative with stiller shots and stronger more pleasant looking cinematography. Perhaps it can be taken as a sign that he is maturing, perhaps he’s just purposefully schizo in his approach to cinema, who knows.
I do know that his fascination with violence and inevitability of it will continue regardless of the type of film he is making. This is the man who once said ‘violence is a lot like f**king in fron of Bill Turnball on an early morning BBC broadcast
I anxiously await Only God Forgives, and the bloodshed that will come with it.
So what are people’s thoughts on this man and his films? What are your favourites? What do you like, don’t like? Do his themes hold weight? Is he the second coming of Martin Scorsese?
Last edited by The Prestige; 02-14-13 at 03:17 PM.
