Refn Premieres 109-Minute 'Her Private Hell' at Cannes After 10-Year Film Hiatus
Updated
Updated · Hollywood Reporter · May 19
Refn Premieres 109-Minute 'Her Private Hell' at Cannes After 10-Year Film Hiatus
11 articles · Updated · Hollywood Reporter · May 19
Nicolas Winding Refn returned to feature filmmaking after 10 years with 'Her Private Hell,' which premiered out of competition at Cannes following a major health scare.
The 1-hour-49-minute horror-thriller stars Sophie Thatcher, Charles Melton and Havana Rose Liu in a neon-soaked story split between a 5-star hotel psychodrama and postwar Japan.
The review portrays the film as visually lavish but narratively punishing, arguing its slasher homages, operatic synth score and fetishized design overwhelm logic and momentum.
For Refn, whose last three Cannes films competed and whose 2011 'Drive' premiere marked a career peak, the new film is framed as another step deeper into his highly self-referential style.
Will Refn's near-death vision redefine horror or just alienate mainstream audiences?
Is 'Her Private Hell' a bold cinematic experience or a beautiful but empty film?