Nicolas Winding Refn has never been a filmmaker looking for the easy way out. If that was the case I doubt he would ever have committed his body of work to film in the first place. Refn is a Director whom pushes the boundaries at every available opportunity he gets, no matter if he alienates his target audience in the process. This is a person so determined to achieving a singular goal that it's almost frightening. With Drive, Only God Forgives and now The Neon Demon he has pushed the envelope of cinema.
Jesse is a reserved yet stunning 16 year old with big aspirations to make it in the LA fashion industry. Although we never know much about her life other than this facet it is more than enough, because that's the point. We are not told vivid or entirely intimate character details, at least not till the end. Like the characters and industry it represents The Neon Demon may at first glance appear superficial, but lurking underneath the surface is its dark blood red humour coursing through its veins and the twisted two faced personalities behind it. Being a newcomer to this entire way of life Jesse is guided by Ruby (Jena Malone) and models Sarah (Abbey Lee) and Gigi (Bella Heathcote) and as Jesse becomes a darker shade of her original self they use her to their advantage.
There's no point now denying that Nicolas Winding Refn is perhaps my favourite Director working today, because in essence he understands what makes cinema such an attractive medium and art form to utilise. Not just in his usage of colours to create an atmospheric mood and stunning visual palette, but in the way he presents his themes however brash they may be, you have to admire his skill and craft behind the camera and the undeniable talent in front of it.
Elle Fanning who showed promise in her limited screen time in Trumbo earlier this year, provides an even greater on screen presence as Jesse. The smallest subtleties of character progression are felt and are only accentuated when the shocking climax is revealed. There's posing to be sure and a hell of a load of it at that (this is about glamour after all), yet this is the bold uncompromising statement of Refn and a scathing reflection of the fashion industry as a whole.
If this sounds like your standard art film about the dangers of the glitz and glamour of the fashion industry take note. The Neon Demon is assuredly not for the faint of heart. With helpings aplenty of cannibalism, forced sexual encounters oh and necrophilia, in case you were wondering. The Neon Demon for all its superficial dressing is very much the work of an auteur and a take it or leave it film maker at that. If any criticism is directed towards the film none should shine on Refn. Uncompromising? Yes. Dramatic? Check. Flamboyant? For sure. I wouldn't have it any other way.
A
Jesse is a reserved yet stunning 16 year old with big aspirations to make it in the LA fashion industry. Although we never know much about her life other than this facet it is more than enough, because that's the point. We are not told vivid or entirely intimate character details, at least not till the end. Like the characters and industry it represents The Neon Demon may at first glance appear superficial, but lurking underneath the surface is its dark blood red humour coursing through its veins and the twisted two faced personalities behind it. Being a newcomer to this entire way of life Jesse is guided by Ruby (Jena Malone) and models Sarah (Abbey Lee) and Gigi (Bella Heathcote) and as Jesse becomes a darker shade of her original self they use her to their advantage.
There's no point now denying that Nicolas Winding Refn is perhaps my favourite Director working today, because in essence he understands what makes cinema such an attractive medium and art form to utilise. Not just in his usage of colours to create an atmospheric mood and stunning visual palette, but in the way he presents his themes however brash they may be, you have to admire his skill and craft behind the camera and the undeniable talent in front of it.
Elle Fanning who showed promise in her limited screen time in Trumbo earlier this year, provides an even greater on screen presence as Jesse. The smallest subtleties of character progression are felt and are only accentuated when the shocking climax is revealed. There's posing to be sure and a hell of a load of it at that (this is about glamour after all), yet this is the bold uncompromising statement of Refn and a scathing reflection of the fashion industry as a whole.
If this sounds like your standard art film about the dangers of the glitz and glamour of the fashion industry take note. The Neon Demon is assuredly not for the faint of heart. With helpings aplenty of cannibalism, forced sexual encounters oh and necrophilia, in case you were wondering. The Neon Demon for all its superficial dressing is very much the work of an auteur and a take it or leave it film maker at that. If any criticism is directed towards the film none should shine on Refn. Uncompromising? Yes. Dramatic? Check. Flamboyant? For sure. I wouldn't have it any other way.
A