Thursday, 12 December 2013
Only God Forgives (2013) Film Review Nicholas Winding Refn
Only God Forgives (2013) Film Review Nicholas Winding Refn
Only God Forgives is a crime/thriller film directed by Nicholas Winding Refn in 2013, which recieved many mixed reviews. The plot of the film follows an American drug smuggler living in Bangkok who comes into many conflicts with a local police officer after the death of his brother.
Colour and lighting is one the main factors that make this film stand out from start to finish. Throughout, we are thrown into masses of bright neon colours mostly of blues and reds. This makes every scene so much more interesting; due to the lack of dialogue, we are given time to admire every inch of the frame cast in these almost futuristic lights, as seen in Figure 2. Damon Wise describes the colours as the "neon sleaze of Bangkok both dangerous and beautiful, everything is bathed in disorientating primary colours". (Wise, 2013). One reason why the repetition of red and blue colours is perhaps to represent conflict. This could be between the main character, Julian and the Bangkok cop, or between Julian and his mother. Whichever, these two colours are seen throughout the film from the very start, such as the opening boxing match where the two opponents are wearing blue and red. Theses two colours are even shown in the poster, seen in Figure 1.
Although in this film we experience horrific scenes of violence such as a man being tortured by being stabbed in both his eyeballs, there is also a comedy value to the this film. From time to time we experience scenes "with bizarre setpieces of sentimentality and nauseous black comedy" (Bradshaw, 2013). This relating to the scenes of the Bangkok cop taking part in karaoke in a small bar, seen in Figure 3. These scenes usually occur after the cop has brutally killed one of his victims and so gives the idea that the karaoke is placed to try to lighten the mood of the film considering what has just taken place. There is something very strange and funny about a middle age Bangkok police officer calmly singing karaoke after committing a horrendous murder.
There are also many Freudian links based around Only God Forgives. This mainly revolves around Julian's relationship with his mother, Crystal. There are many links to Freud's theories such as the competition to be the mothers favorite son; "Julian and his brother Billy's relationship with their mother is entirely Freudian in nature, from the basic castration complex (Crystal, their mother, taunts Julian by comparing the size of his penis to his brother's)" (Hayes, 2013). We are also shown many other hints to Freud's theories such as we are told that Julian had killed his father back when he was living in the US.
Bibliography
Wise, D (2013) Only God Forgives Film Review, http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=137633 (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Bradshaw, P (2013) Only God Forgives (2013) Only God Forgives Review, In: The Guardian [online],http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/aug/01/only-god-forgives-review (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Hayes, B (2013) Only God Forgives is Uncannily Freudian, http://badassdigest.com/2013/07/19/only-god-forgives-is-uncannily-freudian/ (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Illustrations
Figure 1, Only God Forgives (2013) Nicholas Winding Refn [Film Poster] Dennmark/Thailand, A Grand Elephant, https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNn90kO6NDb2wp1ASDgtLrTQiK6xSrfZpT_ZkUPGM87B_I1-l8Q_98Zr7oPYQ7dyqCjV7jOE5a3DlqjCReBrigTA5QmzRaGJ8lXVHihReOeELBY_5eA3m2oY7av3jY_Mb5Lz7NT27gzjPp/s1600/Only+God+Forgives+Poster.jpg (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Figure 2, Only God Forgives (2013) Nicholas Winding Refn [Film Still] Dennmark/Thailand, A Grand Elephant, http://dcfilmgirl.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/kristin-scott-thomas-only-god-forgives.jpg (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Figure 3, Only God Forgives (2013) Nicholas Winding Refn [Film Still] Dennmark/Thailand, A Grand Elephant,http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/BK0iQyEt24A/maxresdefault.jpg (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Figure 4, Only God Forgives (2013) Nicholas Winding Refn [Film Still] Dennmark/Thailand, A Grand Elephant,http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/euOfPwH6zOI/maxresdefault.jpg (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Figure 1 
Only God Forgives is a crime/thriller film directed by Nicholas Winding Refn in 2013, which recieved many mixed reviews. The plot of the film follows an American drug smuggler living in Bangkok who comes into many conflicts with a local police officer after the death of his brother.
Colour and lighting is one the main factors that make this film stand out from start to finish. Throughout, we are thrown into masses of bright neon colours mostly of blues and reds. This makes every scene so much more interesting; due to the lack of dialogue, we are given time to admire every inch of the frame cast in these almost futuristic lights, as seen in Figure 2. Damon Wise describes the colours as the "neon sleaze of Bangkok both dangerous and beautiful, everything is bathed in disorientating primary colours". (Wise, 2013). One reason why the repetition of red and blue colours is perhaps to represent conflict. This could be between the main character, Julian and the Bangkok cop, or between Julian and his mother. Whichever, these two colours are seen throughout the film from the very start, such as the opening boxing match where the two opponents are wearing blue and red. Theses two colours are even shown in the poster, seen in Figure 1.
Figure 2 
Figure 3 
There are also many Freudian links based around Only God Forgives. This mainly revolves around Julian's relationship with his mother, Crystal. There are many links to Freud's theories such as the competition to be the mothers favorite son; "Julian and his brother Billy's relationship with their mother is entirely Freudian in nature, from the basic castration complex (Crystal, their mother, taunts Julian by comparing the size of his penis to his brother's)" (Hayes, 2013). We are also shown many other hints to Freud's theories such as we are told that Julian had killed his father back when he was living in the US.
Figure 4 
Bibliography
Wise, D (2013) Only God Forgives Film Review, http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=137633 (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Bradshaw, P (2013) Only God Forgives (2013) Only God Forgives Review, In: The Guardian [online],http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/aug/01/only-god-forgives-review (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Hayes, B (2013) Only God Forgives is Uncannily Freudian, http://badassdigest.com/2013/07/19/only-god-forgives-is-uncannily-freudian/ (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Illustrations
Figure 1, Only God Forgives (2013) Nicholas Winding Refn [Film Poster] Dennmark/Thailand, A Grand Elephant, https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNn90kO6NDb2wp1ASDgtLrTQiK6xSrfZpT_ZkUPGM87B_I1-l8Q_98Zr7oPYQ7dyqCjV7jOE5a3DlqjCReBrigTA5QmzRaGJ8lXVHihReOeELBY_5eA3m2oY7av3jY_Mb5Lz7NT27gzjPp/s1600/Only+God+Forgives+Poster.jpg (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Figure 2, Only God Forgives (2013) Nicholas Winding Refn [Film Still] Dennmark/Thailand, A Grand Elephant, http://dcfilmgirl.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/kristin-scott-thomas-only-god-forgives.jpg (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Figure 3, Only God Forgives (2013) Nicholas Winding Refn [Film Still] Dennmark/Thailand, A Grand Elephant,http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/BK0iQyEt24A/maxresdefault.jpg (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Figure 4, Only God Forgives (2013) Nicholas Winding Refn [Film Still] Dennmark/Thailand, A Grand Elephant,http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/euOfPwH6zOI/maxresdefault.jpg (Accessed on 12/12/13)
Wednesday, 11 December 2013
Saturday, 7 December 2013
Wednesday, 4 December 2013
Suspiria (1977) Film Review Dario Argento
Suspiria (1977) Film Review Dario Argento
Suspiria is an Italian horror film directed by Dario Argento in 1977. The story follows an american ballet dancer as she joins a german ballet school. However the during her time there, a number of vicious murders occur and is revealed that the school is run by a coven of witches.
As soon as the film starts we are thrown into a 12 minute long tension filled murder scene. Immediately we can see that Argento is not aiming to create a realsitic film but one more about the twisted amazing set design and how grusome he can make a death. He does this my making the whole set over the top with bright colours and warped patterns, the scenes seem more about art than making a film. When watching this film, there are many hints of other films such as The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari. Ed Gonzalez says that "Argento's visuals actively evoke a fairy-tale fantastique, engaging and toying with the Technicolor glory of Disney's cartoon version of Snow White" (Gonzalez, 2001). This quote could relate to the fact that each scene does feel like a cartoon. For example, when we see blood it almost looks simply like pink/red paint,it does not seem that Argento wanted the blood to look realistic but to be this unnatural opaque liquid,seen in Figure 2.
Another way Argento creates an unrealistic weird atmosphere is through the use of lighting. As we continue through the film it is hard to remember any scene where we have encountered natural light. Argento uses bright colours to fill a scene to create different moods, for example, in one scene a character turns off a light and in normal circumstances the set would be plunged into darkness, however Argento floods the room with a sinister green glow to make the scene feel much more evil. Ian Berriman describes Argento's use of colour by, "He uses coloured gels to light scenes in an ever-revolving palette of vivid primary colours, so that, say, a shot of rain falling becomes a shower of blood." (Berriman, 2010). These lights can easily switch the mood of the scene with a simple switch such as a nice calming blue colour to a vicious red just before scene of horror.
Argento's epic horror is also accompanied by a tension filled soundtrack. "It's difficult to give a flavour of its unique, surreal, hyper-intense mood by simply describing it." (Smith, s.d.) Argento creates this tension by delivering scenes with continuous drones of unbearable sounds to make the audience constantly on the edge of their seat until finally you are thrown into silence. This silence seems to only occur just before the violent act of murder is about to happen. The silence seems to create much more horror than the pounding headache of a soundtrack that you wished hadn't of ended until finally you stuck with the nightmarish violence. This accompanied with the sinister lighting creates a masterpiece of a horror film.
Bibliography
Gonzalez, E (2001) Suspiria Film Review http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/suspiria (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Berriman, I (2010) Suspiria Film Review http://www.sfx.co.uk/2010/06/07/freakshow-suspiria/ (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Smith, A (s.d.) Suspiria Film Review http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=132659 (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Illustrations
Figure 1, Suspiria (1977) Dario Argento [Film Poster] Italy, Seda Spettacoli http://heim.etherweave.com/weblog/archives/POSTER%20-%20SUSPIRIA-thumb.JPG (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Figure 2, Suspiria (1977) Dario Argento [Film Still] Italy, Seda Spettacoli https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsQwguwPWT5o7nnAOCMewgSEp43A8H7ThHTo-CnS_j7agUA2i_hyphenhyphen9yvEVw8-SmxfZbDbOb83Qsi-2m23DeSjFvhmTuO7hvVJSmtQnIdCO0JbhSL6Bs3WeyYh-qYMfjJoCJ1T-cQsKYenhO/s1600/Suspiria12.png (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Figure 3, Suspiria (1977) Dario Argento [Film Still] Italy, Seda Spettacoli http://tommygirard.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/suspiria11.jpg (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Figure 4, Suspiria (1977) Dario Argento [Film Still] Italy, Seda Spettacoli https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR2be4fDRbr6h8mkHJX7NRfl3tpffQ81oaLbqBy7KXcOjYwlhJbO8sZ14gwjfz0L9ps4VjdC2KrnrEiYxOPR-55ZjZ0vLLHhG6DrhoGnO8sQu_ZNHbpPCe033x2eeXmtyEvKoPwHr6BNwd/s1600/suspiria-red-hall.jpg (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Figure 1
Suspiria is an Italian horror film directed by Dario Argento in 1977. The story follows an american ballet dancer as she joins a german ballet school. However the during her time there, a number of vicious murders occur and is revealed that the school is run by a coven of witches.
As soon as the film starts we are thrown into a 12 minute long tension filled murder scene. Immediately we can see that Argento is not aiming to create a realsitic film but one more about the twisted amazing set design and how grusome he can make a death. He does this my making the whole set over the top with bright colours and warped patterns, the scenes seem more about art than making a film. When watching this film, there are many hints of other films such as The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari. Ed Gonzalez says that "Argento's visuals actively evoke a fairy-tale fantastique, engaging and toying with the Technicolor glory of Disney's cartoon version of Snow White" (Gonzalez, 2001). This quote could relate to the fact that each scene does feel like a cartoon. For example, when we see blood it almost looks simply like pink/red paint,it does not seem that Argento wanted the blood to look realistic but to be this unnatural opaque liquid,seen in Figure 2.
Figure 2
Another way Argento creates an unrealistic weird atmosphere is through the use of lighting. As we continue through the film it is hard to remember any scene where we have encountered natural light. Argento uses bright colours to fill a scene to create different moods, for example, in one scene a character turns off a light and in normal circumstances the set would be plunged into darkness, however Argento floods the room with a sinister green glow to make the scene feel much more evil. Ian Berriman describes Argento's use of colour by, "He uses coloured gels to light scenes in an ever-revolving palette of vivid primary colours, so that, say, a shot of rain falling becomes a shower of blood." (Berriman, 2010). These lights can easily switch the mood of the scene with a simple switch such as a nice calming blue colour to a vicious red just before scene of horror.
Figure 3
Argento's epic horror is also accompanied by a tension filled soundtrack. "It's difficult to give a flavour of its unique, surreal, hyper-intense mood by simply describing it." (Smith, s.d.) Argento creates this tension by delivering scenes with continuous drones of unbearable sounds to make the audience constantly on the edge of their seat until finally you are thrown into silence. This silence seems to only occur just before the violent act of murder is about to happen. The silence seems to create much more horror than the pounding headache of a soundtrack that you wished hadn't of ended until finally you stuck with the nightmarish violence. This accompanied with the sinister lighting creates a masterpiece of a horror film.
Figure 4
Bibliography
Gonzalez, E (2001) Suspiria Film Review http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/suspiria (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Berriman, I (2010) Suspiria Film Review http://www.sfx.co.uk/2010/06/07/freakshow-suspiria/ (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Smith, A (s.d.) Suspiria Film Review http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=132659 (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Illustrations
Figure 1, Suspiria (1977) Dario Argento [Film Poster] Italy, Seda Spettacoli http://heim.etherweave.com/weblog/archives/POSTER%20-%20SUSPIRIA-thumb.JPG (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Figure 2, Suspiria (1977) Dario Argento [Film Still] Italy, Seda Spettacoli https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsQwguwPWT5o7nnAOCMewgSEp43A8H7ThHTo-CnS_j7agUA2i_hyphenhyphen9yvEVw8-SmxfZbDbOb83Qsi-2m23DeSjFvhmTuO7hvVJSmtQnIdCO0JbhSL6Bs3WeyYh-qYMfjJoCJ1T-cQsKYenhO/s1600/Suspiria12.png (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Figure 3, Suspiria (1977) Dario Argento [Film Still] Italy, Seda Spettacoli http://tommygirard.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/suspiria11.jpg (Accessed on 4/12/13)
Figure 4, Suspiria (1977) Dario Argento [Film Still] Italy, Seda Spettacoli https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR2be4fDRbr6h8mkHJX7NRfl3tpffQ81oaLbqBy7KXcOjYwlhJbO8sZ14gwjfz0L9ps4VjdC2KrnrEiYxOPR-55ZjZ0vLLHhG6DrhoGnO8sQu_ZNHbpPCe033x2eeXmtyEvKoPwHr6BNwd/s1600/suspiria-red-hall.jpg (Accessed on 4/12/13)
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