Ryan Gosling fans, while in for a dose of the Gosling in numerous guises here, may not be too well prepared for Only God Forgives. This is certainly quite the departure for Ryan Gosling, especially compared to his last few big screen outings namely Drive, The Place Beyond The Pines and of course Gangster Squad. And while it reunites him with director Nicolas Winding Refn, Only God Forgives, while a surreal experience, will not be for everybody.
A story that revolves around a drug dealing Julian (Gosling) who's mother (complete with an incestuous under current) compels him to find and kill whoever is responsible for his brothers recent death. While the story line is straight forward, the viewing experience certainly is far from straight forward. Besides the incredibly slow pans, zooms and slow motion, the narrative feels extra ordinarily complicated and combining everything together adds for a difficult and somewhat straining watch.
With a running time of just 90 minutes, Only God Forgives feels at least double that length. Which is never a good thing. If you removed the slow motion and slow pans etc. you’d easily be looking at a movie which would be just over an hour long. And while Winding Refn may well have been going for something poignant and meaningful, things get muddled and confusing far too often,complicated by still and slow shots that do little to move things along. That said, it is beautifully shot with a vibrant color palette illuminating all the sights of Bangkok in quite a futuristic way.
Gosling, Kristin Scott Thomas and their co-stars do an adequate job, but there is nothing here that lifts them above average. With little exception, the actors aren’t really bestowed with room for performances. That said, the way the movie is shot and paced, while slow and incredibly plodding along, is still a testament to Winding Refn. The vision he’s got into screen is nothing short of amazing and it showcases an incredibly talented filmmaker. Unfortunately, Only God Forgives may well be just for his home movie library.
Ultimately a difficult watch for mainstream audiences, let alone the more art house crowd, Only God Forgives is a surreal experience that really demands you keep an open mind and just go with it. Even with that in mind, its a disappointing movie and does in no way live up to the hype and critical praise its receiving. For those that genuinely want something different its worth a punt, but for everyone else its probably best avoided.
