One of the reasons that two days of my reviews are given over to gimmicks is to alleviate my having to choose a film to watch for myself. Am I overselling my disdain for choosing a film? No, not really, and that is for a few reasons. Firstly, I never know what I am in the mood for and will oftentimes spend longer looking for a film to watch then it takes me to actually watch the damn thing. This issue is only elevated by the fact that there is an unbelievable amount of choice, making my endless scrolling all that more endless. And finally, I am always concerned about picking a film I will have enough to say about. There are definitely some films which I would struggle to get more fan a couple hundred words out of, and while that may sound like a relief to you, it doesn’t work for me. So, how did I come to the decision to watch ‘Only God Forgives’ (2013) you may ask? Well, I watched ‘Drive’ (2011) recently and really enjoyed it, and I also knew how divisive this film was. It seems so easy in hindsight. The film follows Julien (Ryan Gosling), an American in Thailand fronting a drug smuggling business. When his brother, Billy (Tom Burke) is killed he embarks on a mission, egged on by his mother (Kristin Scott Thomas), to find and kill the man responsible.
Right off the bat, I want to say I can see why this film sits at 41% on Rotten Tomatoes. For those who don’t know what this means, that doesn’t mean the film is 41% good, it means that 41% of critics who reviewed it recommended it, so almost a 50/50 split. And that rating totally makes sense. On a visual level, the film is superb. The neon lighting is back but it is here in full force, with so much of the film being lit in neon reds, greens, and blues. This might get tedious, but the way that Refn is able to complement this lighting with brilliant shot composition and camera movements to create a real visual treat. The film has several medium-long shots where the characters are placed perfectly in the centre of the frame and they all look great because of how everything is composed in the shot. It also allows for a lot of symmetrical shots which I am a big fan of (I am a Stanley Kubrick fan after all) and overall, the film is just visually brilliant. It also has a superb soundtrack which adds a lot to the film. There is a particular motif in the soundtrack which I particularly appreciated, which is how it uses the sound of a blade unsheathing within the score. So, when a character unsheathes his blade, the noise it makes continues into the score, going from diegetic to nondiegetic often within the same shot. It is quite simple in execution but really adds to the danger and lingering tension in the scenes where it is used. The film is also full of solid performances, even if none of them particularly stand out.
Why then after all that praise do I understand why this film is divisive? Well, that is because it is a film that very much is style over substance. There is a narrative there, but it is a narrative that is all over the place and a complete mess. There were several times when I wasn’t necessarily sure what was going on or who characters were and there are several scenes that are in the film that I just don’t think need to be there at least in a narrative sense. It is also a structurally all over the place. Towards the beginning of the film, there are several dreamlike sequences which don’t do much other than act as cool montages of visuals. I guess you could say that they foreshadow future events in the film, but as to why is never explained, adding to the already weak narrative structure of the film. There are also no characters you an relate to at all, everyone is just a bloody awful person. And there is also a lot of pretty gruesome violence. Now, this doesn’t bother me so much, but the lack of substance in the narrative means that some of it feels like it is violent for violence sake. Like I said, this doesn’t bother me, but I can see why it would bother other people. And there is one scene in particular in the film that was really hard to watch, so much say that I was somewhere between covering and closing my eyes throughout.
So, I have mentioned why I understand why this film is divisive. But did I like it or not? To tell you the truth, I don’t know. I can’t decide whether I loved it or hated it. Well, I don’t hate it. I was never bored, and it is a great visual spectacle. But it does feel like a film that is so much style of substance and I never felt like I really connected with the film. But I also want t to see it again. I am about as confused on my opinion as the film is with its narrative. My lack of decision on my opinion also makes it hard for me to recommend the film. If you are interested after reading the review maybe give it a go, but otherwise, I don’t know. How could I recommend it if I don’t know if I liked it?
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