Refn specializes in highly stylized violence and stories that are basically adolescent fantasies. The cult is probably a bit smaller after Only God Forgives. Set in a version of Bangkok seemingly art-directed by Stanley Kubrick, this deliberately dreamy picture has Gosling playing Julian, an American who runs a Thai kick-boxing gym. Were there boos?
Yes, there were boos. Lots of them. Even the Refn cultists struggled to like this one. Not exactly the sort of main character that Refn fans want to identify with; in fact, the castration anxiety at the heart of this movie is precisely the opposite of what they go to the movies for. You have to admire the cancer-battling Michael Douglas for choosing to do Behind the Candelabra. Rob Lowe has a funny, nasty little bit as the doctor, who looks as much like a reptile as a man. Gradually, their love story goes as wrong as everyone expected it toβdo I hear the word palimony?
That said, both stars do very good work, with Douglas shining in the gaudier role. The hero and narrator, Jep Gambardella Toni Servillo , is an older writer who lives in an apartment whose terrace overlooks the Coliseum. La Grande Bellezza is too much for some tastes, and the movie drifts a bit in the middle.
But while there were a few walkouts, everything comes together in the final scenesβmany hardened critics were in tears. As one who entered the movie expecting to walk out early, I was astonished to be astonished. Save this story Save. When not working on his book about Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai, he serves as a slave to his two cats, Nico and Chubbington. Read more. Topics Cannes Film Festival Recap.
