Valhalla Rising (2009)

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn
Written by Nicolas Winding Refn, Roy Jacobsen and Matthew Read
Starring Mads Mikkelsen, Maarten Stevenson, Gordon Brown and Gary Lewis

For years, On Eye, a mute warrior of legendary strength, has been gel prisoner by the Norse chieftain Barde. Slaying all of his captors, he soon finds himself on a journey with Christian Crusaders in search for Jerusalem. But when a strange mist plagues their travels, they find themselves in a strange new world, with no provisions.

With a strong and ominous first chapter, this film started off just right. There was action, mystery, violence and superb pacing within the opening ten minutes. It seemed that this film was going to have a quality more like Refn's "Drive" and less like his "Only God Forgives".

Then everything came to a screeching halt. The action became nonexistent, the mystery was boring, the violence was plagued by cartoonish blood splatter, regardless of the awesome makeup effects. But nothing was worse than the pacing. The pacing became less suspenseful and more yawn inducing.

With the entire third chapter stuck on a small boat in the middle of a misty ocean, the director decided to show long takes of people trying to stay awake. One can only presume it was his way of holding up a mirror so the audience could truly see themselves in that moment in time.

In an attempt to parallel "Heart of Darkness", I believe Refn was aiming for "Apocalypse Now", but with Vikings. The only problem is, nothing happened for a good twenty minutes. And once they found land, the explorers wandered around aimlessly and separated with no rhyme or reason.

Overall, my biggest problem with this movie were some very questionable choices. It felt as though Refn cared more about having striking visuals with an ambient soundtrack than he did an actual story. And unlike some art films, this Nordic epic had little to say.

I understand Refn has made strong silent characters his trademark, but that shouldn't mean everyone else around the characters should be as stoic. That is what was so great about "Drive". Everyone around Gosling's character talked and wouldn't stop talking.

But this film felt as though he had only a forty page script, and then just stretched it out over an hour and a half. And after as strong as a beginning as this film had, I had such high hopes. Unfortunately, they were not met.

My Rating: 5/10

Only God Forgives (2013)

Written and Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn

Starring Ryan Gosling, Kristin Scott Thomas, Vithaya Pansringarm and Yayaying Rhatha Phongam

Julian, a drug-smuggler thriving in Bangkok's criminal underworld, sees his life get even more complicated when his mother compels him to find and kill whoever is responsible for his brother's recent death.

Following the success and rave reviews of what I consider a masterpiece ("Drive"), Nicolas Winding Refn and Ryan Gosling decided to team up for another collaboration. But where their first effort triumphs, their second effort is less than impressive.

While it may seem counterproductive to talk about a completely different movie in a review, it is because of the director's choices that I feel compelled to do so. There was so much greatness in "Drive" that they tried to duplicate with this film.

The most notable thing about "Drive" is how little the protagonist speaks throughout the movie. It is obvious that they attempted to replicate that aspect in "Only God Forgives". But what Refn forgot was what made the quiet protagonist in his 2011 picture so powerful is the fact that no one around him would shut up. When everyone was saying whatever came to their minds without a filter, Gosling's character thought and meticulously chose his words. In "Only God Forgives", no one talks much. And when they do, it's usually crass, illogical and unnecessary.

One of the biggest problems I had with this movie is how vile every single character was. Not one character was justified in anything they did and it is apparent that the director only made it that way to have as much gratuitous violence as possible. The entire thing felt like a Tarantino-Scorsese inspired student film in which the students had no real aim with what they were trying to say. Everything was so meaningless and screamed of it's desire to be considered art.

Despite being only 89-minutes long, I found myself checking the time constantly. It's short run time is lost to it's long, drawn-out scenes. If the director hadn't been attempting to remake "Drive" without all of the things that made "Drive" great and he actually took the time to think this story out (or at least the way in which it was told), I feel this could have been a great movie.

With gorgeous shots, an amazing soundtrack and decent performances in spite of a half-assed script, this movie had parts of the foundation of what makes movies memorable. But ultimately, it falls short and crumbles into a big messy heap.

My Rating: 4/10