Frank Longo Member since Nov 18th 2003 86830 posts
Tue Jul-09-13 07:22 PM
13. "Saw this at LAFF. Really conflicted." In response to In response to 0
It's way more Valhalla Rising than Drive. That is to say, very little dialogue, tons of sensory nightmarish visuals, very little point other than "the experience of going through it," etc.
I liked a lot about it. Refn's use of music, sound, and lighting are top drawer. Gosling does nothing here really, but Kristin Scott Thomas is gloriously campy and the dude who's the bad guy is darkly hilarious. I really like how surreal Refn makes the film.
But again, it's pretty vacuous in terms of actual character development. It's not about the people in it, it's about the nightmare of the circumstances. Refn described it in a pre-screening interview as an acid trip whereas Drive was really good coke. Seems more or less accurate to me.
People who hated Drive will HAAAAATE this. People who liked Drive will likely find themselves conflicted over this film's good and bad, as I am.