Author Topic: Only God Forgives  (Read 5998 times)

Alan Smithee

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #10 on: July 21, 2013, 04:35:09 PM »
The film is definitely doing something right if its polarizing people. I think the problems lay in either the violence or Gosling performance, neither i had a problem with. The expectations i had vanished since it had been so long ago since i had seen the original trailer, i  pretty much just went in numb.

I was more wrapped up in the story than any one performance and like what was said above "i just let it spell bound me".

Totoro

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #11 on: July 21, 2013, 06:19:16 PM »
Do you listen to the Podcast? I think Matt Singer and Alison Willmore give a very even-handed analysis that covers all the ground between you and me.

My question about "Take off That Dress!" is a legitimate one. What was your reaction? They talk about it on the podcast, but I thought it was poorly done and made me laugh.

Julien is trying to assimilate into the culture by taking a Thai girl to his mom. He loves his mom so her rejection of the Thai girl hurts him. She doesn't like his mom. His frustration of not being able to assimilate or connect with his surroundings in Thailand reach a boiling point to which makes him scream at her to take off the dress. It was a gift from him to her, she doesn't want it nor does she want to be part of his life. It is understandable to me because of his overall disconnection from Thailand and his strange connection to his mother who probably molested him as a child, along with his brother.

Totoro

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #12 on: July 21, 2013, 06:31:25 PM »
where the cop tortures the guy with needles. Slowly walking around the room before grabbing another set. He circles, revels and revels in the violence here exactly 4 times.

I want to like Refen. I believe he's really talented, but also his own worst enemy when he chooses to make a film in this style. Refen's speciality is the quick, loud surprise. It's evident in the Pawn Shop scene in Drive and here at the machine gun attack. There's a moment where the cop drops a guy and it's just BAM!-Down!-Done!. That's followed by a blast that goes through some glass. Refen loves the slow motion, but he brings an action scene to life like few others when his foot is on the gas.

I didn't miss that there's a lot more here than meets the eye initially. Refen's script puts revenge through the looking glass, and how it looks on the other side is fairly interesting. It's different on that level, and it's almost good for being different. However, in the end we have a 20 minute story stretched to 90 minutes. I think he might be going for Leone style,  but he never sustains any mood beyond the gloss.

He is not reveling in the violence. He is torturing a guy for information. Yes, the justice system sometimes tortures people to get information. But Refn isn't reveling in the violence here because there is a point. This is Chang's moral code. This is how far he goes. The slow motion blood splatters in Drive is Refn DEFINITELY reveling in the violence.

The rest I can't argue with except for bringing up other films and showing how contradictory statements like "a 20 minute story stretched into 90 minutes" which I can't even begin to fathom how odd of a statement that is. You could describe most films to be like that, but I digress. As for mood, I totally felt it, it reminded me much of No Country for Old Men, a film that I feel that this is a much better comparison to than Drive. There is just so much dread, so much Biblical allusions in this film that I can't help but find it endlessly fascinating.

1SO

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #13 on: July 21, 2013, 06:51:01 PM »
I'm liking this discussion. The one thing for me that keeps it above garbage like Man of Steel are points like you're making which show that there's something extra to the film beyond the style. I just responded poorly to a lot of what was being presented and the manner in which Refen chose to tell this story. It reminded me of Cosmopolis, which also could be criticized for being about very little except for a colossal amount of naval gazing. A dismissive comment like that is a disservice to both films. Spring Breakers too, which I know you also liked a lot.

Totoro

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #14 on: July 21, 2013, 07:04:26 PM »
I couldn't follow Cosmopolis. I am not as well versed in economics or philosophy as others are. It is still pretty impressive on a visceral level alone though. Robert Pattinson and Paul Giamatti were brilliant too.

Alan Smithee

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #15 on: July 22, 2013, 04:54:23 AM »
In the final scene with Gosling getting his arms chopped off, to me the message of the film was almost against violence. For Gosling's character at least  i felt the film was trying to say just don't get involved, just don't even try,  nothing good can come of your violent actions they just beget  more violence.
« Last Edit: July 22, 2013, 08:16:05 AM by Alan Smithee »

Beavermoose

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #16 on: July 25, 2013, 07:44:22 PM »
Remove the funky soundtrack and the love story from Drive and its actually not all that different in style from this.

Alan Smithee

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #17 on: July 26, 2013, 12:17:59 AM »
Remove the funky soundtrack and the love story from Drive and its actually not all that different in style from this.

And dialogue.

Devil

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #18 on: July 27, 2013, 10:23:50 PM »
I hope the next time Gosling and Refn team up they just make the formers character a deaf mute. Sign language is pretty animated so at least his character will be displaying something that resembles emotion.
~You never say, "I'm gonna fight you, Steve." You just smile and act natural, and then you sucker-punch him~

Alan Smithee

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Re: Only God Forgives
« Reply #19 on: July 28, 2013, 12:15:45 AM »
I hope the next time Gosling and Refn team up they just make the formers character a deaf mute. Sign language is pretty animated so at least his character will be displaying something that resembles emotion.

The Helen Keller story staring Ryan Gosling.