Nicolas Winding Refn returns to Cannes with “Her Private Hell,” continuing his hot streak of appearances at the festival that has divided audiences. The provocateur’s latest film stars “Yellowjackets” and “The Companion” star Sophie Thatcher and “Riverdale” actor Charles Melton, who redefined his career at Cannes when Todd Haynes’ “May December” premieres in 2023.
It was pouring rain when Refn and his cast arrived at the Palais ahead of a late-night screening. As the credits rolled and the audience erupted in applause, star Thatcher burst into tears as Refn paced back and forth, earning the audience a seven-minute ovation.
Eventually, as the applause died down, Refn took the microphone and explained why the film was so personal. The filmmaker revealed that a few years ago he died for 25 minutes and had to be resuscitated. “When I came back by electricity, it changed you,” Refn said. “Now I’m living again. I only have 25 years left in my life, but I’m going to make the most of it and live life to the fullest.”
“It’s a huge step for humanity to make this film again and to come back to Cannes, where I’m from. And I’m here to carry the torch, but I’m not the only one,” he continued, to cheers from the audience. Despite the serious nature of the reveal, Refn didn’t stay gloomy for long and quickly moved on to talk a little about Melton’s sexy body and the hot bodies of the entire cast, which are on full display in the movie.
Refn concluded his talk with an essay about the power of film in an era when “all the politicians have messed up the world, blown up all the countries, and stolen our money. All that’s left is art.”
“Right now, when everything is so unequal and everyone is fighting and yelling at each other, the only thing that brings us together is going to the movies and sitting and watching movies together,” Refn continued.
The director made it clear that he’s not complaining about people watching movies on their iPhones, explaining that even if they do, “movies are about coming together for a collective experience, and that’s what humans do, and at the end of the day, we’re just humans.” Refn appeared to reference his own dire health crisis as a final thought, declaring: “This is year one, day one. Cinema is the future, cinema is alive. Cinema is back.”
Her Private Hell is a neon-tinged fever dream in which Thatcher plays a troubled movie star who has to face paternity issues when her best friend marries her father. At the same time, a mysterious being known only as Leatherman continues to murder young women one by one while shouting “Daddy!” before being torn apart. Melton plays an Army private whose daughter goes missing and who sets out to take revenge and kill the Leatherman.
Refn’s supporting cast includes Havana Rose Liu, Christine Froseth, Dougray Scott, Diego Calva, Shiori Kutsuna, Aoi Yamada, and Hidetoshi Nishijima. The film is backed by Neon, which has won Cannes’ Palme d’Or every year, especially since 2019’s win for “Parasite.” “Her Private Hell” is not eligible for the award because it premiered outside of competition, but Neon still has several contenders, including “Hope” and “Fjord.”
Cannes is currently the festival home of Refn’s last four films, including “Her Private Hell.” The Danish filmmaker took Cannes by storm in 2011 with Drive, winning the Best Director award. However, subsequent projects Only God Forgives (2013) and The Neon Demon (2016) found audiences even more polarized and divided, with reactions to The Neon Demon ranging from boos to walkouts to people shouting indignantly at the screen. “Her Private Hell” is Refn’s first feature film in 10 years since “The Neon Demon.” Refn has meanwhile pivoted to television with the series Too Old to Die Young (2019) and Copenhagen Cowboy (2023).
“Her Private Hell” will be released in the US on July 24th.
