Maybe her having sex with a dead body was supposed to symbolize how lifeless and superficial people in Hollywood are anyways, that they would be similar enough to a corpse, so that her having sex with a lifeless body isn't (metaphorically) that different to having sex with somebody from the industry, because they are pretty much dead inside (??) I don't know though, that scene also threw me off at first
It's just a silly gag. The only way to truly enjoy this movie is to view it as a satire or parody of surrealism. Her having sex with the dead body was funny as hell. I can't imagine anyone actually watching that scene and thinking "hmm.. interesting metaphor" lmao
I analyzed The Neon Demon and I believe the sex scene with the corps is there to show how Jena Malone's character perceives Elle Fanning's character as an image and not a human. She applies red lipstick on the corps like she did to Elle in the bar. She is a makeup artist and through the movie, makeup has a transformative and deceiving fonction. For example, Jesse (Elle) becomes somewhat of a goddess after their second photoshoot because Ruby, the makeup artist paints her that way. Also, there's a scene where Ruby puts makeup on herself right before she comforts Jesse. It shows how even though she is a monster, she can paint herself as a caring person. In that necrophilic scene, Ruby transform the corps, a body deficient of personality, into Jesse with makeup and gets what she wanted from her. She recreates the image of Jesse onto that blank canevas of a corps. Ruby is a creator, like men are in the movie (photographers, stylist). They create images and the women are images. I personally think the Neon Demon is a great reflexive film about cinema, but it's not a horror movie. That's my take on that scene.
I love that movie, the bit where her fax machine is going off and printing something - the beeping was so intense and everything was so quiet I was crapping myself.
Nicholas Keating Honeslty I hear about this movie so much and I'm surprised no one has brought the HD remaster over to the west. I think Satoshi Kon's films deserve more respect, and need exposure, in the west.
Nicholas Keating yes I truly loved it, definitely one of my favorite anime movies. Highly recommend for everyone to check out. Very mind fucking in a way and tricks you a bunch.
I think my favorite use of foreshadowing in the movie was when they all were in the bathroom and ruby asks if Jesse is food or sex based on their conversation about the lipstick. When Jesse refuses to have sex with ruby she then becomes the food.
That was incredibly obvious. As soon as I heard that, I was like yeah, a cult, eating her, got it. Not really a good use of foreshadowing imo. More just telegraphing what was going to happen.
You should definitely watch Mulholland Drive, the storyline is kind of similar to The Neon Demon (with an aspiring actress instead of a model), but the script and the characters are very well written and developed AND, because it's a David Lynch film, there's some weird and super creepy/unsettling scenes!
The wildcat was a foreshadowing of what got Jesse in the end: she was devoured live. I understand that many people may be appalled by its symbolism and it is more arthouse than horror, but this was my favorite film of the passing year.
Abby Lee was my favourite in the movie too !! I think the point was for none of the characters to be likeable. I also spent like an hour after watching it on the internet looking for all the meaning behind everything. I really did like this movie but I get it is not going to be everyone's cup of tea. *SPOILERS* Remember when in the begining in the bathroom she is told how every cosmetic's name is either about sex or food and they start talking about how everything is either one of them, so when elle fanning is no longer "sex" (she rejects jenna malone) so she becomes "food".
Love your reviews! I actually REALLY liked this movie, and enjoyed it even more the second time around. There is a supernatural angle to this, which was actually confirmed my Jena Malone in interviews-she has mentioned the trio of girls is somewhat of a coven, and Ruby in particular is 300 years old. When I first saw the film, I noticed a lot of the witchcraft symbolism (the triangles, the virgin sacrifice, the blood bathing/drinking, the recurring moon stuff, etc) so I had a witchcraft theory brewing, but you can actually find a lot of stuff in the interviews that confirms it. This also answers some of the questions you had about certain scenes, so I definitely recommend looking into this-I think you would find it interesting, and appreciate the movie a bit more. Than being said, I do agree with you on the pacing, and Refn's movies are always heavy on the style-it's just something that either works for you or it doesn't :)
This was actually one of my favorite movies last year. Maybe it doesn't have the traditional horror elements until the third act, but the theme of 'women doing whatever means necessary to be young & beautiful' is pretty terrifying & bleak. That's why they bathed, consumed, and had sex with the corpse (at least JM's character); to have a piece of her. Believing that they will then possess the same youth & beauty. Check out the movie Dumplings. It explores the same idea.
I've recently discovered your channel and I've been going through all your videos. I'm so glad you reviewed this film, it's one of my all-time favourites with one the best soundtracks. - the mountain lion scene was to symbolise the danger she was in and how easy it is for a predator to get into her room which is relevant later when Keanu Reeves tries to break in. - the 5-minute scene with her on the runway was to show her transforming from an innocent girl to a confident woman and almost becoming the villain of the film with her new arrogance. - the corpse sex scene was to show how much the makeup artist wanted to be with Elle fannings character which was a literal body double for her sexual desires, she even looks just like her - as far as I know, the film was edited with the soundtrack as the composer actually made specific music for each scene which could explain the overly long edits and length of the film
There's a lot of occult symbolism in this movie. Just about every scene can be dissected and explained. They might seem long but there's a reason. If you notice, the cat that ends up in Jessie's room is also present in the home that Ruby is living in (although it's a taxidermy version). Also when you see Ruby washing the pool out topless, she has a lot of occult tattoos. The upside down triangles, Jessie kissing mirror images of herself, Ruby's period during the full moon, the cannibalism, Gigi's plastic filled body rejecting Jessie's pure body, all of it. It's one of those movies that I had to watch about two or three times before I understood it completely.
Ok, so, I don't know if I'm pushing it TOO HARD to understand it but I saw the wildcat scene as her being the wildcat or almost as an omen, she slowly realized her "powers" and her being dangerous so I think the wildcat scene was sort of a projection of her before she turns dangerous, being that the wildcat it's a wild animal but they most often get killed and that's what sorta happened to her, she became a danger to everyone around her because of jealousy and a threat to the other models so they end up killing her
actually we analized this move at univeristy today and this movie only works with symbolds which you dont understand at first. Like for example the wild animal in her room is a symbol for danger coming ahead cause of her starting the model career. But yeah theres a lot more xD thx for making the review sarah :) love your videos
3:06 There were a lot of cryptic scenes in this movie, one of them being the wildcat in Jessie's room which was Ruby shapeshifting into another being to spy on Jessie
(rape mention) that scene when keanu reeves sends a rapist up to jesse's room and he ends up going to the room next door and she listens to her being assaulted literally gave me nightmares wHEW.
i really liked the movie. Can totally understand your point, I also thought some scenes could have been shorter (Honestly I skipped through the five minute scene) But overall I really liked it. It's super weird and creepy and all the little symbolism is kinda awesome. It's that kind of movie that you watch and afterwards you gotta go on google to look out on all the little details you missed. But yeah, it's totally a movie to watch if you really like this kind of movies or are in the mood for something really weird and artistic.
Every scene and every minute of each scene has his own story, there´s a part (where there aren´t any dialogues) where we can see Elle just putting on her shoes or something but we see her through the mirror and it just symbolyzes how the superficial world is. PLUS IT IS A WITCH STORY, they ate a virgin and felt younger and prettier.
Just watched this. The cougar in the room at the beginning and then the leopard/jaguar taxidermy on the wall I was immediately like OK so they suck the "souls" of people to stay youthful like the CAT LADYS ON SCOOBY DOO ZOMBIE ISLAND!!!!! Hahahah
Will you do a review of the recent French film, Raw? Though I feel that's more thriller than Horror. Have your say whichever, just thought it'd be interesting to hear your say upon it.
If you haven't already, check out Suspiria. It's one of the most aesthetically pleasing horror films ever. Very artsy but it doesn't skimp on the gore or the scares. Dario Argento has a way of killing people in a horrific way but in a beautiful way. Nocturnal Animals is another film that had really good cinematography. It's incredibly long and odd but the overall film was actually pretty good. It's just really depressing but it made you think.
Personally I loved the movie, but I definitely agree some scenes were drawn out way too long. I understand it's a 'style over substance' type movie but at the same time if a scene is drawn out too long it can get boring to watch.
i just saw this movie and read some interviews and analysis to understand it better - basically the wildcat scene is supposed to represent her "leaving the door open" for the fashion industry's "monsters" to come in
As a person who likes films, you should watch Drive. That is FOR SURE his masterpiece. Watch it with a really good sound system, cause the music is so fucking amazing, and the shots are great. I used to think like you, but arthouse movies, when done right, are just sublime, and Drive is a great example. It will prolly change the way you look at film altogether. It did for me at least. Watch Antichrist for a good arthouse horror film. That one is very very VERY disturbing though, and they do show genitals, and there is some, umm, yeah, harm to the genital area in two scenes, but trust me, that is worth it, cause the movie is just so great. I really think you are a really good personable, and likable critic, so I would LOVE to see you challenge yourself with movies that have that arthouse depth to them. You liked The VVitch, which is basically arthouse horror. I feel that with those kind of movies, it's very hit or miss though. It can come of as just the director jerking off and basically showing everyone how smart they are, or they are just amazing, like Drive. If you want some great challenging movies, reply to me and I will give you a list of really great indie horror that is more artsy and some that aren't really horror. I know you have the potential to be a very great critic, I just wish you would be more open to explore different kind of films. If it's not your thing, cool, but I just think you haven't seen the right kind of artsy movie for you to know that's not your thing. Idk.
I personally love this movie but can see why people would not. In reference to your comment about how a horror movie shouldn't take time before it turns into one, what if you're going for shock value? Like let's say a film presents itself as a coming-of-age comedy film for the first like 45 minutes of the film. Then, out of nowhere, a character is killed off and we get a huge tone and genre shift into a horror. What would your opinion of that be? I ask because that's literally what I did with my screenplay. Most people who read it loved the twist, but I am curious about your opinion on such a thing.
I usually really love artistic films, but I feel like this pushed it so hard. I just felt like it was screaming UH LOOK AT HOW ARTSY AND SHOCKING IT IS in my face. Ugh.
This video and the comments here are the best things I have heard about this film. I gave it a 1/10 because I thought there was nothing redeemable except the visuals but with that I heard and read in ONLY this video, I might give this a 2 or 3/10 and give it another chance.
This movie was so boring in my opinion... the symbolism was so heavy-handed and the "twist" was just jarring and made no sense instead of being "surprising." The only thing I liked was the cinematography :/
I'm pretty big on artsy films (and even some of Winding Refn's films), but this one is just a load of nonsense. If you'd like to see something by him which is worth watching, I'd recommend Drive or Only God Forgives. I hear the Pusher trilogy is good too, but i haven't seen any of them
I tend to enjoy films like this, because I feel like it provokes me to search for a deeper meaning in the noted bizarre scenes. I haven't watched neon demon yet, but I plan on doing so. Also, I love keanu reeves and I am a little disappointed that his character is slimy.
Haven't seen the review yet but my friends don't wanna watch the movie, they don't believe me when I tell them this shit is good, it starts really meh and artistiqui but the end is so twisted it fucked me up
To answer your questions, The part in the hotel, the wild cat was put in her, or from what I believe, the demon is able to morph, which is common demon folklore. You should really look into directors before watching a film. Nicholas Winding Refn, he makes visually stunning movies, with very little plot usually and he usually isn't the best at writing characters with depth (which is why his best movie, Drive, was not his screenplay). The long runway scene is when she gets into herself, it's basically like a part from 2001: A Space Odyssey, it's all visually driven, which if that's not your thing, that's understandable, but this director is REALLY artsy. The dead body part, honestly was dumb, it was pure shock value. I would explain the end, but I doubt you would care lol
This is a terrible review - which is disappointing because I do like you as well as some of your reviews, but don't let those blind likes make you think that you made a "good" review here, most of those likes are probably there just because it's YOUR video. Either that or a lot of people must dislike this film for all the wrong reasons.
Antoni Tolwinski I'm sorry you think I made subpar content, I'd love for you to share your opinions though and let me know what you love about the film!
I don't like saying "you didn't get it" because 90% of the time that just sounds pretentious, but unfortunately it really applies in this case. I'm glad that you appreciate the film in terms of its visual merit, but I'm also surprised (and obviously disappointed) that you didn't seem to understand and appreciate it fully as most of its worth stems from the visuals - which is a defining factor of these "artsy" films, if you know that, why would you go into it expecting recycled mainstream horror? I understand that your main critique falls down to the fact that that the "horror" was too subversive (aka "weird") and that it took a while for it to start happening - but not only is that an appropriate approach that artistic films usually adopt, it's utilised to its full potential as it reflects the main theme of the film. All the scenes that feel either "drawn out" or "jarring" have a specific purpose - whether it's building tension, providing foreshadowing or creating a certain tone that feels suitable for the type of world that is being exposed here... it all serves a purpose, and once again, reflects the main theme of the film, which explores the tragedy of glorifying a shallow concept and as a result getting metaphorically and literally consumed by it. I could write out a whole analysis here but I'm not even sure if you'll read all of this, so I'll end this comment by saying that you shouldn't attempt to review artistic films that clearly you don't have a lot of experience with - I know that may sound arrogant but it's genuinely good advice, all genres have subgenres that transcend into the art house territory and thus no longer fit in with the "regular", art house is essentially a genre of its own and films like 'The Neon Demon' require more attention and analysis than your regular James Wan flick. So basically I'd suggest sticking to reviewing the types of films that you're familiar with, because what you did here is similar to what would happen if someone that only reviews superhero films suddenly reviewed the new Charlie Kaufman film... usually it just doesn't work out.
Antoni Tolwinski well given that this was a mainstream movie, of course the general public will get its hands on it, and not everyone will like it. I reviewed it from a horror fan perspective and as this is my channel, I was simply sharing my opinion. I appreciate your feedback though and understand where you're coming from seeing how these kinds of films aren't my favorite, so of course I'll have negative stuff to say about it. is it necessarily fair to the film? no, but I'm not going to ignore artistic films entirely on my channel.
What a terrible advice, to tell someone to stick to what they know and like. Honestly, you sound like a disappointed fanboy that needs to tell everybody who doesn't get their favorite film (whether they truly did not get it or simply did not like it doesn't seem to matter either) how great said film is no matter what. Opposite to what you are claiming in the beginning you sound pretentious. Especially if this is not someone's sub-genre of choice I think it is great if they try their hands on it, it is also nice to hear different opinions from different people coming from different backgrounds. So, please, PossessedbyHorror, don't feel intimidated by this statement!
I agree with @Antoni Tolwinski. Sorry @PossessedbyHorror, but this wasn't a good review for all the things he said, and I think there is no "nice" way to say it. Of course you can review whatever you want, but I will add that maybe it would be better the next time you review this kind of film that you do a little reserch about it and who made it and what kind of movies the director does. This is not a mainstream film, it's an author movie that stars "mainstream" actors maybe, even though Elle Fanning has mostly work on indie films. I wouldn't considered this horror neither, it just takes some elements of the genre.
This is modern Kubrick, who was also vilified when his films released. Congratulations, you're a modern-day Kubrick nay-sayer. Wait 10 years, and we'll see how silly you feel.
