Based on what I’ve been hearing about “Her Private Hell,” directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, it’s not much of a surprise that it wasn’t offered a Competition slot at the Cannes Film Festival.
“Her Private Hell,” which premieres tonight, is apparently Refn’s most experimental film yet — with barely any conventional story structure and more emphasis on atmosphere than narrative. According to my source, that atmosphere involves a lot of fog.
That said, we now have a teaser for the film, and it’s as neon-drenched as expected. This is Refn’s first feature film after a ten-year sabbatical from directing movies. The cast includes Sophie Thatcher, Charles Melton, Dougray Scott, Diego Calva, and Kristine Froseth.
The “story” being told here involves a troubled young woman who sets out in search of her father. During her quest, her fate intersects with that of an American GI engaged in a desperate journey to pull his daughter out of Hell.
Refn previously described “Her Private Hell” as an original story filled with “glitter, sex, and violence” — in other words, signature territory for the filmmaker. It will also revisit themes — and possibly characters — from some of his previous works.
Refn’s last feature was the delightfully divisive The Neon Demon, a body-horror acid trip starring Elle Fanning that debuted at Cannes to a chorus of boos, bravos, and early exits. Since then, he’s stayed busy in television, directing Copenhagen Cowboy for Netflix, Too Old to Die Young for Amazon Prime Video, and producing The Famous Five.
Neon has set a summer release window for “Her Private Hell,” with a theatrical rollout beginning July 24 on 800 to 1,200 screens.
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