Tuesday, November 21, 2017 at 9:00PM by Nathaniel R
After his success d'estime with Drive (remember that surprising but wonderful Cannes Best Director win?) his provocative (aka insane) follow-ups, Only God Forgives and The Neon Demon, have not been greeted so enthusiastically. But Denmark's second most famous director shows no signs of slowing down...
Wednesday, July 6, 2016 at 6:29PM 
Nicolas Winding Refn. Photographed by Tom Hoops for Lab MagazineNicolas Winding Refn, the Danish auteur whose made a career of candy colored violent films after grimier movies at home, is both exactly what you'd expect and unexpected. The expected: he's a little bit eccentric pacing the room rather than sitting, a little intimidating, and a little impish -- it's difficult to know if he truly means what he says in some instances, or if he has just mastered the art of provocation. The unexpected: he's relatively friendly, surprisingly generous about his collaborators despite the auteur's ego, very tall, thin and surprisingly attractive, something you wouldn't necessarily think since he's so often been photographed with inhuman gods like Ryan Gosling who make everyone but other movie stars look crumpled and basic.
As we talk we find mutual ground in Christina Hendricks adoration ("the perfect woman," he says) but elsewhere it's like he's speaking a foreign language and I don't mean Danish. His films, though quite serious on the surface, betray a dark sense of humor, and yet it still surprises me to hear him drop "I think it would be fun to make a spy movie" as we're saying our goodbyes. Why is this surprising? I couldn't quite tell you but such is the fascination of meeting this singular director, whatever you make of his increasingly divisive movies.
Our interview follows....
NATHANIEL: Let's talk about your opening scene. It's such a bold tableau. Did you ever worry you were coming on too strong. Like 'how will I top that first image?'
NICOLAS WINDING REFN: I'm setting the stage knowing that, if you look through the film, you'll see the same dynamic in all the other scenes of death and beauty.
NATHANIEL: So you're laying the theme.
NWR: I'm laying the theme right on. Most films -- storytelling in mass media -- start slowly, introducing. Eventually it gets to some kind of dramatic point in the first act. That means the second act is how do we solve it and the third act is resolution. But i don't necessarily believe that's the right order...
Tuesday, June 28, 2016 at 6:33PM This review was originally published in Nathaniel's column at Towleroad
What are we looking at?
The Neon Demon‘s first tableau features Elle Fanning, throat slit and reclining on a chaise lounge floating over a pool of photogenic crimson blood. It’s so perfectly lit and shaped it begs to be honored as a metaphoric pedestal exalting her death. Is the obviously smitten man photographing all of this her serial killer who missed his calling as an art director?
Friday, December 12, 2014 at 12:28PM 
It's almost the weekend and if you're reeling from nominations from SAG, the Globes, the NAACP Image Awards, OFCS, lists from AFI, Time & EW, might we ask you to pause and amuse us with a comment on the premiere of Inherent Vice?
What's Reese thinking?
<= Do you think she, Maya Rudolph and Jenna Malone('s shoes) color-coordinated on purpose?
Tuesday, November 18, 2014 at 11:00AM
I'm not a fan of Inherent Vice much but it will inspire lots of fun fan art and/or official stuff... like this banner poster starring Katherine Waterston as "Shasta Fay". (Her hair is filled with secrets characters.)
I wish P.T. still wrote memorable female characters (sigh) even the kind of vacant bimbos like Rollergirl used to be awesome. With There Will Be Blood he basically left them behind altogether. Inherent Vice has a dozen or so female roles and only two of them are halfway interesting (Yay, Jena Malone and Jeannie Berlin cameos).
Uh-oh... I feel a list attack coming on. It can't be stopped
Female Characters in P.T. Anderson films from Most Fascinating to Least
(not comprehensive but the major ones)
