The Neon Demon (2016)

Review

117min

Genre:     Drama, Horror, Thriller

Director:  Nicolas Winding Refn

Cast:       Elle Fanning, Abbey Lee, Jena Malone…and more

Writers:   Nicolas Winding Refn, Mary Laws and Polly Stenham

-Synopsis-

Writer/director Nicolas Winding Refn applies his aesthetic stylings to a gruesome story about our vapid modern society’s obsession with youth and beauty, starring Elle Fanning as a young aspiring model who’s faced with the dark reality of a town and industry intent on bleeding her dry.

There’s no doubt that Winding Refn has a strong penchant for the ole’ “ultra-violence” and a sadistic streak which has often surfaced in his previous films; but with ‘The Neon Demon’ he’s free to indulge in his darkest fantasies and fetishes within a narrative that has something to say, in a film that’s a bit too polished and stylish to be truly macabre but is nevertheless as unsettling as it is beautifully shot.

With a title that’s a not-so-subtle metaphor for the superficial obsessive “beauty” monster in all of us, and a pretentious industry and depraved society which feeds on it; ‘The Neon Demon’ stars Elle Fanning as the young teen ingénue who arrives in L.A. a fresh-faced wannabe model, only to be consumed by the industry and her effect on everyone around her.

The fact that Fanning was only sixteen at the time of shooting only adds another disturbing layer to a provocative painting; but it’s fitting in a “fashion” context and nothing new to a young veteran of the film industry, who shines in the film and proves a perfect canvas for Winding Refn’s colours. She’s flanked by a fitting cast of beautiful “demons”, led by Jena Malone who proves to be the most morbidly intriguing and show-stealing.

For all the controversy and negative press, ‘The Neon Demon’  is surprisingly tame for a so-called horror, and the shock value of the cannibalism and necrophilia is majorly cushioned by the stylish and sensual way it’s depicted. Despite being clearly influenced by European and exploitation films of the 1970s; horror fans looking to satisfy their gory needs will likely be disappointed in this regard, but anyone expecting a straight Winding Refn violent thriller might find some of the scenes hard to stomach.

Like any Nicolas Winding Refn film, ‘The Neon Demon’ is a cinematic wrestling match between style and substance, and unsurprisingly given the nature of the film, style is central to not only the look of the film but the narrative as well. Cinematographer Natasha Braier does a sterling job with vividly dark tones and dusk-like imagery which hypnotizes with an other-worldly quality, and brings to life the meticulous costume design that a film like this naturally requires.

Thankfully though, substance puts up a real fight here with a dark fantasy-like narrative which is well grounded in reality; a grim and seductive study on a cannibalistic industry which devours everything in its path, chewing up and spitting out young women, fuelled by a decadent society obsessed with youth and beauty.

The entire package really comes down to the thing which sets the mood, drives the story and creates the atmosphere, and that’s the director’s 3rd collaboration with composer Cliff Martinez in an evocative original score of electronic “Synthpop”. In a piece reminiscent of the Vangelis work in ‘Blade Runner’, Martinez mixes seductive and ethereal melodies with pulsating tones to create a mesmeric soundtrack, without which the film wouldn’t work on any level.

Despite its dark seductive fetishist appeal and visual beauty, ‘The Neon Demon’ is no cinematic masterpiece and is an acquired taste to say the least. This is still a case of style over substance which might at times look like an avant-garde music video; but considering  his inexplicable previous directorial outing ‘Only God Forgives’, Winding Refn has crafted something to get your teeth into here. A disturbingly mesmerizing horror/thriller, with a dark fantasy view of an industry whose sordid underbelly depressingly reflects our society.

The Bottom Line…

A dark and disturbing fetishist fantasy horror which will no doubt divide opinion; ‘The Neon Demon’ is a beautifully shot and brilliantly scored piece of mesmerising performance art, with just about enough substance and reflective quality to make it a compelling cinematic experience, if not a profound one.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Suspiria (1977)

An innocent and beautiful young American woman travels to Germany to join a prestigious dance school, but as mysterious occurrences and grizzly murders start to happen, she soon discovers the horrific truth about the academy and its teachers in this beautifully shot, cult-classic European supernatural horror from Dario Argento.

Directed by Dario Argento and starring Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini and Flavio Bucci among others.

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