MovieChat Forums > The Neon Demon (2016) Discussion > I think in decades to come this might be...

I think in decades to come this might be considered Refn's best film.

posted 7 years ago by TheRedViper
11 replies | jump to latest

Even though my personal favourite film of his is Drive, I have no problem in calling The Neon Demon his greatest artistic achievement in film. Everything that was great in his other films is multiplied here: utterly gorgeous cinematography, a hypnotic and thrilling score, a shocking and unpredictable story told in a somewhat abstract nature, and plenty of symbolism and metaphor.

While Drive was a very straight forward and accessible film (for Refn, at least), The Neon Demon is so out there and balls-to-the-wall insane that there are several parts of it that I know will always stay with me and leave an incredibly strong impression. Add to that the movie's very dark sense of humour and I think this will become a classic for a new generation of arthouse lovers.

Usually I refrain from calling recent films "classics", but I feel that The Neon Demon at the very least will be considered Refn's best film (assuming he doesn't make another film better than this, which I'm not sure he will). It's the most daring, the most uncompromising and the most hypnotic of all of his films, even if I find Drive to be the most enjoyable and accessible of his films.

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Delicious - http://imgur.com/50eSH9o

[–] FourViolets 7 years ago

I agree with this post 100%. I was completely enthralled, hypnotized and engrossed by this film. It left such an impact I literally kept thinking about it and analyzing it. It wasn't until the second and third time I watched that I realized that a) I loved it and b) this is actually a really great film.

I don't like to use the word classic much with new stuff either but this strikes me as a classic. Like I've witnessed something that will be held in a high regard in the future and grow a cult following over time. I also agree this is Refn's best film and I love Bronson, OGF and Drive. It's the perfect mixture of surreal and realistic.

Thanks for sharing your opinon. The boards can get clogged up in negativity, so it's always refreshing to see others speak out with views on this film similar to mine.

[–] The-Road-Warrior-96 7 years ago

Hey dick, remember when you trashed the *beep* out of drive? You're a class a mouth breather. How often did your mum drop you on your head as an infant? Neon demon is derivative *beep* but of course you wouldn't know that because you only watch modern movies. But wait, you've seen 3 bergmans, 4 tarkovskys, you're brilliant, your knowledge is unmatched! *beep* yourself mate

- - -
FILMS OF 2016 RANKED: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls063621532/

[–] t-g-1998 7 years ago

^this

Videogame ratings:tggoulart
Top 30 of 2016:http://www.imdb.com/list/ls063882564/

[–] 7 years ago

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[–] FourViolets 7 years ago

derivative shut ? I beg to differ lol. This film was brilliant. I love Mulholland Dr, Black Swan, Mean Girls and Suspiria with a fiery passion of 11 Suns... but this movie has all the best elments of all of those movies and made it it's own... and it didn't come across as any of them at the same time. I respect your opinion but I will voice mine. I have seen this more than once and watched it completely unbiased. Didn't matter to me how awesome Drive was or if the cast was all women. I witnessed a masterpiece and yes I just fudging said masterpiece because I actually believe it.

[–] 7 years ago

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[–] 7 years ago

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[–] archibald14 7 years ago

The Neon Demon will probably be seen as one of his major works, but to say it will be seen as his best necessarily is a very unsubstantial claim. You may be right that it has the best elements but a movie's greatness is not about the sum of its parts, but rather about the whole.

I don't think the general storyline was unpredictable. It was quite obvious the girls were going to try to kill and eat her.

I found Drive less accessible personally because I had no idea what Refn was getting at and it wanders quite a bit, whereas in The Neon Demon the movie makes it very clear what it is about, and it also was careful to never lose the viewer, keeping the story focused and pretty straightforward. It also has a lot of dialogue scenes that pretty much spell things out. I think you are mistaking stylish, artsy execution with unaccessibility.

[–] RedHawk10 7 years ago

Even though my personal favourite film of his is Drive, I have no problem in calling The Neon Demon his greatest artistic achievement in film.

Oh for fck sake.

What would you do - trapped in another dimension?

[–] FourViolets 7 years ago

I humbly agree with the OP. I watch films unbiased. I loved Drive but I went into TND with an open mind. Not expecting better or worse and I was moved by the entire thing in a way I wasn't as much with Drive. It's his most rewatchable for sure. The Runway scene alone kills all his other movies in its sheer greatness. Watch this again unbiasedly... and forget about the fact that they are women and not men and you could possibly see what we see.

[–] MyNameIsAlvis 7 years ago

Troll? Not everyone who disliked this is sexist, Drive is above average.