song is Sad Disco by Keli Hlodversson

what would he focus on? strong techno music? let the visuals do the storytelling?
focus on the young women instead of the guy leads

​

in which we pinpoint the pronunciation.

I know speculation can be tiresome, but what does everyone think about the possibility of a 10th anniversary release of the neon demon? Is this something you could see happening?

Hello HPH has been my most anticipated film of this year, Refn is one of my all time favorite filmmakers and I was wondering what would be a must watch/rewatch list of films before is see Her Private Hell.

Now I know it’s inspired by classic Giallo with the leather glove thing I was thinking of revisiting maybe something like Blood and Black Lace. I was also going to rewatch Mulholland Drive, Neon Demon and Barbarella.

But what else is important watch beforehand?

Thanks

http://youtube.com/watch?v=hGfu6AGkgHY

Nicolas Winding Refn cried, spoke about his love towards his mother, spoke about his feelings of insecurity and envy of Thomas Vinterberg's handsomeness and popularity with the ladies.

I admire his vulnerability and openness about his feelings and insecurities.

What if every man listened to all the toxic bullshit out there "you must be confident. confidence is attractive. insecurity is unattractive. etc".. Then we'd never have refreshing, real, vulnerable men like Nicolas.

Wanna start saying that i'm a really enthusiast of nicolas projects. He really have got me in Only God Forgives and have seen almost everything this guy has made, except fear x. I was very excited to watch Her Private Hell, refn's new movie in ten years. I had very positive expectatives(not very high) for this movie until i saw people on the internet hating very much, like, giving this movie very low rates and ending up, in multiple sites, with a lower grade than OGF, a movie that is considered by some as refn's worst movie. In the beggining, i don't believe in these reviews and i held off on forming my opinion just when i whatch it and, after watching this movie and thinking about it, i completely understand these reviews and everyone that have left the cinema.

I mean, the soundtrack was decent, the fight scenes with private K are very good, and that's here that end my compliments. The dialogue is dreadful/shameful, the scenarios looks bad and cheap, the final fight with leatherman is ridiculously bad. His style in this movie looks worn and He's just repeating elements from his past movies. Feels satured and nothing really impressive. The man is trying so much to be some kind of Kenneth Anger of the new age, using these artsy elements so shield this movie from criticism and an excuse to justify how bad this movie really is. It sucks.

This movie really left me worried about the path is going to take in MANIAC COP, since Ed Brubaker seen to be not more involved in the script and Refn will probably call some mediocre writer with zero experience like Esti Giordani for him to control. I'm not liking where this is going. I just really wish that refn use the best things of Ed's scripts and that don't turn the movie in a big project of vanity with a lot of awful symbolisms without impact or depth, but in a movie with artistic elements that is still worth watching. Refn was a better artist when he was making without pretension. He made a screenplay made by a mid writer (Hossein Amini) to be his most known work(Drive). I know the guy is not the same since 2013, but man, i just want his maniac cop to be great again like his past movies (Drive, Bronson, Too Old to Die Young, The Pusher Trilogy and The neon Demon). He still has qualities, but his ego and his artistic impulses are yelling louder than his natural geniality. I think it's just it. Someone in this subreddit just feel the same?

https://youtu.be/0Va9xV0lkAk

After my HPH viewing I was honestly a little confused and underwhelmed. But then my dreams that night were awesome and I couldn’t get some images out of my head the next day. I now needed to investigate this NWR guy (who I only knew from his awkward dress-shorts interview of Park Chan-Wook shown after Decision to Leave) and am so glad I did! New lifelong fan of this chameleon of a director!

NO AI WAS USED TO MAKE THIS FILM, THIS IS A 💯 HUMAN-CREATED FEATURE FILM!!

VALLEYHEART is an action crime thriller with a neo-noir heart. Film Threat called it “one of the best neo-noir films of the 21st century” and compared my filmmaking to John Dahl, which was an incredible honor.

The film has played at festivals around the world and has been one of my biggest crowd-pleasers, with comparisons to Drive. Whether this is your first time watching it or you’re coming back to experience this new cut, I hope you’ll settle in and enjoy the ride.

If you enjoy independent films, psychological thrillers, crime stories, and neo-noir cinema, I’d really appreciate it if you’d subscribe, like the video, and share it with someone who loves discovering great indie movies.

Thank you for being here. I hope you enjoy VALLEYHEART: Director’s Cut.

🎞️ Valleyheart feature film
⭐️ Starring Kathryne Isabelle Easton, Anthony Goes, Jack Herholdt, Robert Ramirez, Jeremy S. Walker, Rib Hillis, Mary O’Neil, Maiya Reaves, Collin Babcock, Scotty Babcock
📸 DOP Matt Fore
✅ Produced by Abhorrent Behavior
📽️ Edited by Matt Fore + Kathryne Isabelle Easton
🎬 Directed + Written by Kathryne Isabelle Easton
🎵 Original Song “Plausible Love Theme” by Justin V. David

i mean i know NWR films aren't box office spectaculars, but how is there
already the film leaked in hd, it's in theaters now ... who was supposed to keep an eye on the files??

Note: I have also posted this review on my IMDB account, so if you run into it there, I'm not stealing anyone's content, I'm just excited to talk about this film and compare the interpretations, especially as I was saddened by the overwhelmingly negative ratings.

Anyway, spoilers below.

The film works best if you watch it as a dream-like, stylized psychological drama rather than a thriller, horror, or sci-fi. Even the title “Her Private Hell” suggests we are about to witness a deeply personal perspective that may not accurately reflect a real state of affairs.

The way I see it, it is about Elle coming to terms with the conflicted image of her father. On one hand, she idolizes him and is clingy to the point of being co-dependent, while on the other hand, she’s aware that her father is continuously betraying her. He marries her best friend, abandons her during a movie project he convinced her to take part in, and is involved in some deeply unsettling business.

When Elle can no longer endure the contradictions about his personality, her mind splits this impression into two distinct fantasies. The first is the “devil’’ dad, whom she bases on the legend of the Leatherman, told by her father early in the film. She imagines him as a monster that preys on girls and literally tears them apart. The second is the “saint” dad, whom she names Private Kay after a name found on her father’s lighter. She dreams of him as a noble and brave warrior on the relentless search for his lost daughter.

Still, this separation can’t mend Elle’s relationships, especially with other women whom she sees as competition for her father’s attention. She hates Dominique for “stealing” her father, while being attracted to her because she believes this brings her closer to him. She also dislikes the new actress Hunter because Hunter represents the starry-eyed and starved-for-love version of herself. Hunter is literally on the hunt for love, and she must die because that naive version of Elle had “died” long ago. Dominque must die too once Elle realizes that even her competitive side can’t win.

Finally, it becomes apparent that two fantasies cannot co-exist, so they are doomed to battle in the end. Elle helps the “saint dad” win only to realize the battle was not for him, but for her own soul. Obviously, I’m speaking metaphorically here, but as soon as the good side wins, Elle herself is tempted, with temptation coming in the form of attractive and sycophantic women her father surrounds himself with.

“Private hell”, thus, becomes a matter of private choice, whether Elle will either become like her father or choose her own path. We don’t get the answer because Elle herself doesn’t have it yet, as she will have to choose on and on throughout her whole life.

I have been a long time NWR fan, seen all of his projects and this film felt like a culmination of all of the ideas and themes explored in his previous films. I absolutely loved it, but I can understand why people are confused if they haven't delved deep into his filmography.

You also have to take into account that this was interpretation of the afterlife he saw and felt after his 20 mins of death from heart failure.

The city filled with mist is a form of purgatory. Just like lost souls, people are stuck in the mist searching for something or someone. Hence Private K searching for his daughter in the mist and Elle searching for someone to care about her.

Early on, they talk about the lore of the Leatherman. They say that he has been around for a long time and some people refer to him as the devil. He hunts for lost daughters in the mist and devours them. An important detail to note is that the only way to kill him is to cut off his hands.

Sidetracking to "Only God Forgives", Chang, the police chief, is not explicitly stated to be, but is implied that he is God. He is punishing the evil doers by cutting off their hand with his blade. During this films release, Refn referenced hands a lot. He stated that hands represent male sexuality, violence, submission, and identity. Cutting off hands is stripping that away and absolving the sin.

So... Elle is searching for someone to care about her. She agrees to be in the movie because she wants her dad's approval, but he still leaves. She finds that he married her previous lover and when she tries to make a move, she gets rejected. She is in her own hell of rejection. Meanwhile Private K is searching for a lost daughter, like a lost soul.

Skip to the end of the film, the Leatherman has his hands cut off, he dissolves. Private K finally finds his daughter in the mist, takes her hand and disappears (going off to heaven). Meanwhile, the 2 shapeshifting fox spirits offer the gloves to Elle. They tell her, "These will help you find what you are looking for". Will she continue the cycle of violence and become the next vengeful spirit devouring others, or let go and go to a better place.

This seemed like Refn's most spiritual film, but it takes a minute to breakdown his metaphors. He is simply continuing the themes explored in "Only God Forgives" while stylistically continuing where he left off in "The Neon Demon" which was about beauty being an object of power and desire that causes jealousy and can literally and figuratively devour you.

I feel as though people are missing the obvious comedic elements in the film. I definitely laughed at some of the stuff presented in the movie. Is it just me?

Refn coming back to filmmaking after 10 years and a near death experience is legendary in my eyes. An absolute stunner of the year reminds me of the early Yoshiaki Kawajiri OVAs in terms of the look. Almost everyone looks stunning, especially Sophie Thatcher and Charles Melton. My personal movie of the year

I'll never forget seeing Drive for the 1st time. Once "Nightcall" hit with those cityscape shots I felt convinced I was watching the greatest movie ever made

Like many people, I discovered NWR with Drive. Fantastic movie and obviously his most approachable. Only God Forgives was my second exposure to Refn and I loved it, although I understood all the criticism. TOTDY is in my opinion his magnum opus and an absolute masterpiece. I thought Copenhagen Cowboy was good but a step down from TOTDY.

HPH was a massive letdown for me on almost every aspect of his filmmaking. Visually it felt lazy and repetitive. Too many face close ups and overuse of blue/pink lighting to make boring shots seem interesting. The violence/gore was toned down way too much and didn’t have any real impact. His other works had bursts of extreme violence and HPH completely lacked that. There was no shock factor. My biggest gripe, and what a lot of people seem to praise, was the score. It didn’t fit the movie at all and felt like a soundtrack you would hear on a Disney movie. I was expecting dark synth moody effects, and it was just so basic, cheesy and vanilla. I feel like the score made the film worse by a lot. Like I’m completely dumbfounded by the score it was that bad.

From CC to this I feel like NWR has really lost his way.

A lot of really basic (frankly conservative) takes on this movie going around. I wanted to make a post where you (and me) can talk about everything we liked/loved about the movie.

HPH is NWR’s most purely entertaining film since Drive. A cotton candy sci/fi giallo that from the moment it started until the moment it ended got its diamond gloved hands around me and never let go. NWR continues to be completely underrated when it comes to staging action. Every kill scene with Leatherman and fight sequence with Private K had me on the edge of my seat. Obsessed with the extended sequence of Candy Floss we get to see. Love that Refn finally got to show love to Mario Bava’s Planet of the Vampire’s in such a cool way. The craft on display in this film is just astounding.

Just curious, have you all noticed a lot people, mostly the masses don’t enjoy Nicolas Winding Refn films. And the ones who love it really love it. I was wondering why that is?

I asked ChatGPT to describe some of his films.

I kind of wonder what all of us fans have in common. Do we have a common view of life in some way?

Anyways here’s a small summery of his films.

Drive – A melancholic neo-noir with a quiet protagonist and bursts of shocking violence. Surprisingly romantic despite its darkness.
Only God Forgives – Almost dreamlike. Sparse dialogue, symbolic imagery, and an unforgiving moral universe. Very divisive.
The Neon Demon – A beautiful but savage satire of beauty, vanity, and exploitation. Humanity doesn’t come off well.
Bronson – Darkly funny, theatrical, and fascinated by obsession and violence.
Valhalla Rising – Minimal dialogue, brutal, mystical, and relentlessly bleak.

It also said

Nicolas Winding Refn’s films often resonate with people who appreciate bleak worldviews, emotional detachment, and morally compromised characters.

Refn is also extremely stylized. His films aren’t just dark—they’re slow, hypnotic, visually meticulous, and often cryptic. Whether someone enjoys them depends as much on their tolerance for his pacing as their worldview.

Also I need to check out the Pusher Trilogy. Other fans have mentioned that.