Only God Forgives

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Only God Forgives

R

2013

1h 30m

Crime

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

41%

Tomatometer

166 Reviews

37%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

In Thailand, a drug trafficker's (Ryan Gosling) icy mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) sends him on a mission to avenge his older brother, who was killed for beating an underage prostitute to death.

Critics Consensus

Director Refn remains as visually stylish as ever, but Only God Forgives fails to add enough narrative smarts or relatable characters to ground its beautifully filmed depravity.

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Candice Frederick

Reel Talk Online

09/07/2017

D

Here's hoping Refn's next one redeems him.

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Jason Bailey

Flavorwire

06/19/2016

'Only God Forgives' is a mess, an overly stylized and brutally violent mood piece with something to alienate everyone. It's also absolutely worth seeing.

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Chris Stuckmann

ChrisStuckmann.com

04/17/2015

B-

Only God Forgives is an extremely misunderstood film.

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Patrick Cavanaugh

The Wolfman Cometh

09/20/2023

4/5

Far more sparse and metaphorical than the previous Refn and Gosling collaboration, but it's arguably much more visually lush, making for a challenging experience that showcases the filmmaker's cinematic sensibilities.

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

09/01/2022

1/4

Aside from Scott Thomas, whose performance is magnificently over-the-top, the actors and storyline have almost no humanity to them, serving only the film’s vague metaphor about punishment.

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Keith Garlington

Keith & the Movies

08/24/2022

2/5

While Refn may not like strong narratives, deeper characters, or good dialogue he certainly loves mood lighting, long hallways, and gaudy wallpaper.

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Richard C

@Chappy8765 Feb 18

10 minutes in. What the hell am I watching. Makes no sense and what's with the karaoke scene?!

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Griffith J

@griffithxjohnson Sep 24

The definition of style over substance with all its effort put into making beautiful visuals while forgoing a story worth telling. The pacing moves incredibly slow & lets these mesmerizing shots to soak beyond what feels good. The plot is straightforward with deplorable characters trying to justify their horrible sins. The lighting is a bold mix of colors that build a dreamlike tone. Refn’s directing goes overboard on his signature style but there isn’t enough meaning to back it.

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Fergus R

@RT65018113 Jul 31

highly underappreciated dark and violent revenge movie with excellent cinematography; it lacks character development, so bear that in mind before watching.

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Red in D

@redindenver May 23

WTF?? I gave up after about the first 20 minutes. I tell myself I should give ALL films with (usually) really good actors at least 20 minutes of my time before calling it a wrap. On this one, I probably should have broken my 20-minute rule. Why would Ryan Gosling have signed up for this crap?

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apyroguy2 T

@RT36798605 May 18

Wow. Rarely do I take the time to review a movie. It has to be outstanding in some way. This movie is outstandingly awful. Not even God will forgive the producers of this movie.

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Rehan T

@RT81460504 05/06/2025

absolute dog crap...

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Nicolas Winding Refn

Director

Ryan Gosling

Julian

Kristin Scott Thomas

Crystal

Vithaya Pansringarm

Chang

Rhatha Phongam

Maï

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Synopsis

In Thailand, a drug trafficker's (Ryan Gosling) icy mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) sends him on a mission to avenge his older brother, who was killed for beating an underage prostitute to death.

Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Producer: Lene Børglum, Sidonie Dumas, Vincent Maraval
Screenwriter: Nicolas Winding Refn
Distributor: Radius TWC
Production Co: Nordisk Film Shortcut A/S , Film Väst, Bold Films, Space Rocket Nation, Motel Movies, DR v/Filmklubben,
Rating: R (Language|Grisly Images|Sexual Content|Strong Bloody Violence)
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 19, 2013, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 17, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $775.9K
Runtime: 1h 30m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)