Crime film specialist

Violence, gritty and real, will bludgeon the silver screen this month at the Northwest Film Center. From Sunday, March 8, to Saturday, March 17, the center will present Driven: The Films of Nicolas Winding Refn.

This mini film festival is a retrospective on the work of this increasingly popular Danish filmmaker and will feature seven of Refn’s eight films, including Drive (2011), which earned Refn Best Director at last year’s Cannes Film Festival.

“All of Refn’s films, with the exception of Bleeder, will be shown,” said Ted Hurliman, exhibition program manager at Northwest Film Center. “Each one of his films functions in its own world, which could be attributed to the fact that they are somewhat of a cult phenomenon.”

Refn’s vision is immensely unique, according to Hurliman.

“His films are incredibly violent, which is not to say they are gratuitous in any way,” said Hurliman. “The violence happens in antithesis to what you would expect: It’s very sudden, and it’s very real.”

Refn wrote and directed his first film, Pusher, at age 24. The 1996 film was an instant hit, and as a result, Refn turned down an opportunity to attend the Danish Film School. Pusher follows a small-time drug dealer, Frank (Kim Bodnia), who experiences a drug deal gone horribly wrong, leaving him in debt to a drug lord.

After making his second and third films, Bleeder (1999) and Fear X (2003), Refn decided to turn Pusher into a trilogy. With Blood on My Hands: Pusher II was released in 2004, and I’m the Angel of Death: Pusher III was released in 2005.

“The trilogy as a whole is one of the best trilogies ever made,” said Erick McClanahan, theater manager and projectionist at Northwest Film Center.

Fear X was the director’s first foray into American cinema. When the protagonist’s wife is killed, Harry (John Turturro), a mall security guard, begins his own investigation. On his journey, he discovers that things aren’t what they seem to be.

Following the Pusher trilogy, Refn started to explore other genres, beginning with his 2008 film, Bronson. After a seven-year sentence turns into 30 years of solitary confinement, Michael Peterson (Tom Hardy) finds himself with an alter ego, named “Charles Bronson,” that has utterly taken over his psyche.

“It’s the tale of a real-life criminal in England who changes his name to Charles Bronson,” McClanahan said. “It’s a story about being lost in this guy’s head.”    

In 2009, Refn’s cinema took a new turn with Valhalla Rising.

“It’s probably best to classify [Refn] as a crime-film specialist,” Hurliman said. “This is with the exception of Valhalla Rising, which is set in early Norway with a focus on the Vikings.”

One Eye (Mads Mikkelsen), a Viking warrior with superhuman strength, is held captive by Norse chieftain Barde (Alexander Morton), who treats One Eye as subhuman. Sick of being abused, One Eye and Are (Maarten Stevenson), a young boy who delivers food and water to him—and the only person with whom One Eye has a relationship—decide to team up and kill Barde. Thus begins One Eye and Are’s bloody venture.

Drive, which has given Refn a more popular following, is the story of a straight-up bad-ass played by Ryan Gosling. His character is a stunt driver by day and a get-away driver by night. His normally emotionless persona is shaken when he meets a woman named Irene (Carey Mulligan) and her son.

“It’s visually impactful,” said Jessica Lyness, head of PR and marketing manager at Northwest Film Center. “I wanted to live in the movie for a few days after I watched it. The film is a modern crime drama.”

“[Refn] is trying to tell these stories in these realistic settings and trying to literally bring the viewer in,” Hurliman said. “Drive is especially good at that, with an almost dreamy first half, a great sound track and long, slow shots.

“When the violence happens, it explodes out of nowhere. It’s completely jarring, but in a way that lets you know that this world he has created in the first half of the film is false. No one is safe within the confines of this movie.”

This is where the “wow” factor comes into play for the viewer, Hurliman explained.

“Everything I thought I knew about the film has just changed in front of me, and now I have no bearing,” Hurliman said. “As a viewer, that’s a great trip to go on, to not know where the movie is headed. It keeps you second-guessing. It’s always a bit ahead of you, and it’s always a fulfilling journey.”

If you’re looking for some excitement before finals, this retrospective is a great chance to take a leap into dark and unfamiliar cinematic territory.