"In many ways, this movie is a gift from the directors I could work with in the last years. As an actor I've passed though deeply real movies with Derek Cianfrance to the imagination of Nicolas Winding Refn. I think I have oscillated between these two extremes because my own sensibility as a director lies somewhere between the two," he says in the press notes for the film (via Ryan Gosling Addicted)."You can read more of Ryan's official statement at RyanGoslingAddicted
"Starring Christina Hendricks, Ben Mendelsohn, Eva Mendes, Saoirse Ronan and Matt Smith, the fantasy thriller centers on Billy, a single mother of two, who is swept into a macabre and dark fantasy underworld while her teenage son discovers a secret road leading to an underwater town. Both Billy and Bones must dive deep into the mystery, if their family is to survive. Trippy stuff, and certainly these snaps bear that out, with Gosling describing the film as inspired by the realist and fantastical filmmakers he's worked with."
"Un Certain Regard looks strong, with Ryan Gosling's directorial debut "Lost River" probably the headliner"
"Shot in Detroit last year, “Lost River” has been one of the more anticipated projects in moviedom, both because of its director pedigree (Gosling does not star) and its plot line, which is said to concern a single mother and an underwater utopia. (Though slightly lower profile than the competition section, Un Certain Regard is often the home for first-time directors.) The movie does not yet have a U.S. distributor or release date, though you wouldn’t guess it from the breathless Internet anticipation about the film."
“It’s about this family living in a town called Lost River, which is perhaps a place that was once full of family and happiness and love, and is now this town that’s slowly descending into a place without any hope. This family is holding onto the foundations of their house and everything they think they need to hold onto.”Cannot wait to see Ryan's next contribution to movies. This time behind the camera!
"But there's more to their career changes than been-there-done-that nonchalance. All three actors, as popular as they are, have stated that the mainstream movie industry isn't for them. They've always gravitated towards challenging roles in interesting films .... a man in love with a sex doll in Lars and the Real Girl (Gosling). And now they're taking the next step away from Hollywood. "Some of us are tired of all the sissies in this town," Gosling told New York Magazine in 2010. "The ones who go along, flow with the flow, line up where they're told to line up at. The studios want you to make the same movie over and over – if that's the movie they liked, that's the movie you should keep making."
Writing and directing, then, are just part of the story. We are seeing a wave of actors, who could easily milk the Hollywood status quo, choosing to seize the means of production – and hand them on to others. They're pushing the film industry towards a more diverse, democratic, independent future. When your local multiplex is showing the next dose of The Fast and the Furious, you may feel that future can't come soon enough."So HAPPY BIRTHDAY Ryan we can't wait to see where you take us next on your creative journey!
Only God Forgives reviewSee Katie's video of the Q&A here
Ok, so what do I say about Only God Forgives? I saw it tonight at a preview screening (it is released here in the UK on 2nd August).
First of all - Ryan is great. He shows his characters (Julian) psychotic tendencies and calculating ways just as brilliantly as his vulnerability and childlike qualities. He owns every scene he is in. Yes even the scene when he is being punched repeatedly in the face until he goes unconscious. Only God Forgives is like the darker, messed up, evil twin version of Drive.
Kristin Scott Thomas plays Ryan's mother Jenna and wow she is creepy. So in control. So commanding. So completely out of touch with reality. Such a departure from her usual roles, in looks aswell as personality.
The bad guy Chang - played by Vithaya Pansringarm - is bad. In the way dictators are bad. Torturing someone one minute and singing Karaoke the next. The contrasts are purposely shocking.
The ways director Nicolas Winding Refn described Only God Forgives in the Q&A after the screening - sadistic, perverse, sexual, with Oedipus undertones - and his subsequent comment that he makes films about what arouses him makes for an unsettling tone. The film is violent to the extreme. Yes it shows the characters but it feels at times to just be there. Seeing the graphic torture doesn't bring anything to the film to me. Some violence and some hinting at the rest would have done fine. It's there to shock, in my opinion, and nothing else.
I should say at this point that the only other film of Refn's I've seen is Drive, which I loved. I know he's made other equally violent films. After watching Only God Forgives I can honestly say this violence is not the kind of film I enjoy watching. During the slow drawn out torture scene myself, and many others i noticed in the cinema, looked away.
On a happier note there were some funny anecdotes. Here is a video of some of the Q&A. Nicolas was asked about the timing of Only God Forgives being made, and that Drive was made after Only God Forgives was written. He also talked about casting. (Ryan was not the original Julian).
There is a particularly memorable scene, ok there are lots of memorable scenes, but this one shocked me and made me laugh at the same time. Jenna, Julian and his girlfriend (aka a prostitute) are sitting at a table in a bar/restaurant. Jenna is being particularly rude towards the girlfriend. She starts discussing Julian's cock size compared to his (now dead) brother. The brother who is/was her favourite. The brother who was the biggest (yep...). Then she calls Julian's girlfriend a 'cum dumpster'. Google this if you don't know what this means. Or maybe don't. Anyway, this was mentioned in the Q&A. How did Nicolas come up with this insult? He asked Ryan! He asked Ryan to list all the worst ways to insult a woman. It was a long list. This was the first one. Nicolas had to ask Ryan what it meant and Ryan explained. Then when they were first on set and Kristin had the script she asked Nicolas what it meant and he had to explain ha ha.
Other memorable scenes (good and bad):
- Julian being tied to a chair with fabric around his wrists, whilst his girlfriend/prostitute masturbated in front of him.
- Julian demanding his girlfriend removes her dress (and therefore stand in underwear) in the middle of the street. And her doing what he asks.
- Julian/Ryan wearing a suit. Enough said.
- Julian fighting/boxing in suit/waistcoat/shirt ... before being punched unconscious
- the most disturbing scene - after finding his mother dead from knife wound Julian err... slides his fingers into the open wound and..yea. just no. (lets forget this scene) Ryan wearing a suit. repeat. Ryan wearing a suit...
I did enjoy the film overall. Ryan and Kristin (and others) acted well and were a credit to their characters and the storyline , but there were some extreme scenes that I wouldn't want to watch again. It is definitely not an easy film to watch.
review by Katie Harris aka @word_scribbler
(Currently studying towards a BA Hons Degree in Creative Writing)
