Only God Forgives

Only God Forgives is a dark, atmospheric film directed by the celebrated Nicolas Winding Refn, who reunites with Ryan Gosling following their successful collaboration on Drive. Released in 2013, the movie takes viewers deep into Bangkok's seedy underworld, a location of both potent fantasy and threatening reality. The film is a gritty, vibrant union of the crime and thriller genres, compromising nothing in its specific visual style and narrative.

Ryan Gosling plays Julian, an American expatriate who has set up a professional boxing club in Bangkok that serves as a front for a massive drug operation. Gosling imbues Julian with an icy stillness and calculated stillness, making the actions and violence his character participates in all the more shocking. Gosling's portrayal borders on virtuoso, sinking deeply into the character's complexities.

Julian's life plunges into chaos after his older brother, Billy, brutally assaults and kills a young local prostitute. This heinous act results in Billy's own murder at the hands of the girl's father, sanctioned by a chilling, justice-obsessed police lieutenant named Chang, played with quiet intensity by Vithaya Pansringarm. This sets off a violent and bloody chain of events that leads Julian down a path of revenge, retribution, and redemption as he grapples with his personal demons and his place in the world.

Kristin Scott Thomas plays Crystal, the central character Julian's icy, domineering mother, who flies in from the US when she learns of her older son's death. A Lady Macbeth-type figure, Crystal is cruel, manipulative, and fiercely protective of her family's criminal empire. Scott Thomas's performance is extraordinary, as she creates a character that is both grotesque and fascinatingly watchable.

Unlike many crime thrillers, Only God Forgives delves into unique territory with its invocation of spiritual and psychological themes. The title hints at the weighty moral and religious undertones that course through the film. Director Refn draws on the concept of karma, a natural force of cause-and-effect and retribution prevalent in various Asian religions. Themes of sin, punishment, and absolution pulse in the movie's vein, constantly questioning the thin border between justice and vengeance.

Refn's hyper-stylized aesthetic gives Only God Forgives a dreamlike, sometimes nightmarish quality. With its vivid color palette, shadow-soaked compositions, and lingering, often wordless, scenes, the film communicates largely through its visuals. The violence is graphic, brutal, and essentially profound, sharply juxtaposing against Bangkok's neon beauty and the score's uncanny calmness.

The hauntingly beautiful and eerie score by Cliff Martinez deserves special mention. His electronic music enhances the film's beauty and brutality, creating an alienating harmonic sounding that matches the film’s tonal shifts. The soundtrack emulates the movie's slow-burning tension, working in conjunction with the striking cinematography to augments Refn's Bangkok's menacing, dreamlike atmosphere.

Moreover, Larry Smith's cinematography paints an atmospheric portrait of Bangkok, helping set up a grim, unnerving canvas for the movie's events. The lighting, mostly neon, deeply contributes to the film's distinct visual style and enhances the atmospheric tension throughout the narrative.

Only God Forgives is by no means an easy viewing, full of intense scenes with strong thematic elements and an atmospherically thick environment. The viewer must be willing to accept the film on its own terms, to let its unique sensory experience wash over them, unhurried and unaffected by conventional filmmaking norms.

The film's eccentric nature and distinctive storytelling can be polarizing, but there is no denying that Only God Forgives is a challenging cinematic experience that leaves an indelible impression upon anyone willing to open themselves up to its esoteric narrative and surreal aesthetic. In the end, the film's bold artistic vision, atmospheric narrative, compelling performances, and philosophical undertones make it a powerful cinematic experience.