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| Ryan Gosling |
"Only God Forgives" a plodding, unsatisfying crime thriller
"Only God Forgives" is the new crime drama and follow up from "Drive" director Nicolas Winding Refn and his "Drive" star Ryan Gosling. As with "Drive," Refn gets points for style and acting but a sluggish, uneven narrative drags the film down. Julian (Gosling), a respected figure in the criminal underworld of Bangkok, runs a Thai boxing club and smuggling ring with his brother. His brother is suddenly murdered and their crime lord matriarch, Crystal (Kristin Scott Thomas) arrives from London to bring back the body. When Crystal forces Julian to settle the score with his brother's killers, Julian finds himself in the ultimate showdown. Heavily stylized and well-acted, "Only God Forgives" ultimately disappoints from an unsatisfying script from Refn; the story is intriguing but exceedingly plodding, something that also plagued "Drive." Refn is an interesting director with an obvious fascination for brutal violence, which is peppered throughout the film. As the sword-wielding bad guy Chang, who believes himself to be "God" thus the title for the film, unknown Asian actor Vithaya Pansringarm is chilling, and Oscar-nominated actress Scott Thomas is also memorable as Gosling's overly honest, blowsy mother with control issues. "Only God Forgives" is a polarizing film, some may enjoy its dark, somewhat hypnotic red-infused style, while others think the dull storyline hampers the film (I fall into the latter), with a deeply unsettling but unsatisfying ending. Refn is certainly a director to watch with Tarantino-esque potential, but the flawed "Only God Forgives" seems to lay the groundwork for something better.
Wes's Grade: C
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