Review of The Neon Demon (2016) by Peter F — 21 May 2018

The vapidity and objectification that surrounds the modeling world seems like prime material for a horror film, and filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn has been long overdue to make one, previously demonstrated that he has a singular talent for capturing a hellish tone(perhaps the redeeming value of his previous film Only God Forgives).

Sadly though, none of these factors make Refn's latest project work, and The Neon Demon is an experience that's more nauseating than anything else. It gets off to a good start with a first half that's pretty-on-the-eyes and even shows promise towards being revelatory towards its subject.

Refn once again shows he's a brilliant stylist like few other contemporary directors, giving the film a luminescent yet haunting glow that recalls the Giallo films of Dario Argento, and employing a synth/pop soundtrack that recalls Drive.

Still, his achilles heel shows through the script, which grows increasingly messy and non-sensical throughout the second half. Just as in Only God Forgives, Refn fails to script engaging characters, and the stilted acting he asks from his cast just makes them come off as caricatures.

In fact, just as it's all about to hit rock bottom in terms of interest, The Neon Demon becomes a splatterfest with even more diminishing results, as we just don't have the means to care about any depravity these characters face.

Ultimately, The Neon Demon is much like the models it's trying to elucidate on: beautiful in an artificial sense, while empty and rotten to the core.