
The consensus on Only God Forgives leans negative, though even many detractors admire its carefully composed images and oppressive Bangkok atmosphere. Praise clusters around the cinematography, production design and Cliff Martinez’s eerie score. Kristin Scott Thomas’s darkly comic performance also earns approval across the divide, with several critics finding her a welcome interruption to the solemnity. For many, however, these pleasures do not compensate for thin characters, awkward dialogue and violence that becomes numbing rather than disturbing.
The spread is wide, and the disagreement concerns more than tolerance for brutality. The Guardian finds the film gripping and formally brilliant. Radio Times argues that its slow, alienating approach rewards patience. Less persuaded critics find little beneath the stylisation, while mixed reviews often enjoy the atmosphere without finding enough story or feeling to sustain it. Gosling’s restraint is another dividing point: some admire it, but others see an inert central performance that makes involvement difficult.
R
Radio Times
★★★★ · Damon Wise
80
Wise describes the film as an alienating, slow and intensely violent drama that rewards viewers willing to stay with it. He singles out its fractured, psychedelic style and Refn’s enduring fascination with violence.
Read the full review →G
The Guardian
22 May 2013 · festival review · Peter Bradshaw
75*
Bradshaw finds the film gripping and formally brilliant, despite its extreme violence and likely walkouts. He especially praises the cinematography, production design and art direction for creating its eerie, vivid world.
Read the full review →E
Empire
28 May 2012 · Damon Wise
70*
Wise finds the film a hallucinatory, uncompromising study of guilt, though its slow and mannered style may frustrate viewers. He particularly praises Cliff Martinez’s score for its eerie sounds and how it deepens the Bangkok setting.
Read the full review →S
Screen Daily
22 May 2013 · festival review · Mark Adams
70*
The visible headline suggests a positive but atmospheric verdict. It singles out the film’s mesmerising, moody, and violent qualities.
Read the full review →The page is identified as a review of the 2013 film, but its contents are inaccessible. The critic’s verdict and specific praise or complaint cannot be verified.
Read the full review →L
Little White Lies
2 August 2013 · 5/3/5 · Adam Woodward
60
The critic finds the film self-indulgent but engrossing, calling it Refn’s most complete work and possibly his masterpiece. They praise its hypnotic visual style and visceral atmosphere.
Read the full review →T
Total Film
18 July 2013 · ★★★ · James Mottram
60
Mottram finds the film difficult to love but says it has moments to savour as a stylish exercise. He praises its visual and sonic atmosphere while faulting its lack of a moral core and fully developed characters.
Read the full review →I
IndieWire
18 July 2013 · C · Eric Kohn
57
Kohn finds the film lethargic and less inventive than Drive, arguing that its stylized violence overwhelms its potential. He praises Kristen Scott Thomas’s blunt, unhinged performance as an enlivening contrast to Gosling’s zombified presence.
Read the full review →A
The AV Club
18 July 2013 · C · A.A. Dowd
57
Dowd finds the film visually striking but rarely engaging, and says its revenge story fails to generate excitement. He praises Refn’s atmospheric direction and the hypnotic score, while faulting the film’s emotional emptiness.
Read the full review →E
Evening Standard
27 May 2013 · festival review
35*
The critic finds the film strange and its slow-motion approach overextended. They praise its lush Bangkok cinematography, while faulting its sparse script and slow-moving characters.
Read the full review →I
The Independent
23 May 2013 · festival review · Geoffrey Macnab
35*
Macnab finds the film visually stunning but ultimately let down by a clunky plot and awkward dialogue. He particularly praises the cinematography and Gosling’s restrained performance.
Read the full review →F
Film Comment
· Jonathan Robbins
30*
Robbins presents the film as a stylized but hollow collection of violent set pieces. He singles out its fight scenes, describing them as money shots rather than meaningful drama.
Read the full review →The review is sharply critical of the film’s numbing violence and stylized world. It singles out Kristin Scott Thomas for bringing comic relish to her role.
Read the full review →V
Variety
22 May 2013 · festival review · Peter Debruge
30*
Debruge finds the film stylish but emotionally hollow, with Gosling’s near-catatonic performance making it difficult to invest in Julian. He singles out Kristin Scott Thomas’s commanding, campy turn, though he ultimately finds even her performance rings hollow.
Read the full review →S
Slant Magazine
22 May 2013 · festival review · Jordan Cronk
25*
Cronk finds the film visually striking but ultimately shallow and weakened by clichés. He praises Refn’s atmospheric compositions while criticizing the one-dimensional characters and caricatured antagonists.
Read the full review →N
The New York Times
18 July 2013 · Manohla Dargis
25*
The review is negative, finding the film more style than substance. It singles out the movie’s highly stylized presentation as a central weakness.
Read the full review →L
Los Angeles Times
18 July 2013 · Betsy Sharkey
20*
Sharkey finds the film a brutal, overreaching disappointment with little meaning or emotion. She praises the precise framing and atmosphere early on, but criticizes the thin characters and muddled plot.
Read the full review →T
Time Out
30 July 2013 · ★ · Dave Calhoun
20
The review is strongly negative, finding the film empty and silly. It says the electronic score, neon, zombie-like performances and violent scenes fail to disguise those flaws.
Read the full review →V
Vulture
19 July 2013 · David Edelstein
10*
Edelstein finds the film excruciatingly bad, criticizing its solemn, stylized presentation and Gosling’s performance. He considers Kristin Scott Thomas the standout, praising how her campy role cuts through the film’s solemnity.
Read the full review →D
Den of Geek
19 July 2013 · ★★★★ · Nick Allen
80
The critic praises the film as a richly atmospheric, visually memorable work, while acknowledging that its protagonist and storytelling have familiar flaws. He especially singles out the cinematography and the lingering beauty and brutality of its imagery.
Read the full review →D
Digital Spy
26 July 2013 · ★★★★ · Ben Rawson-Jones
80
The critic finds the film mesmerising and terrific, though its ambiguity and slow pace may alienate some viewers. They praise its hypnotic neon-soaked style and the performances of Ryan Gosling and Kristin Scott Thomas.
Read the full review →P
Paste
22 July 2013 · 6.5 · Tim Grierson
65*
Grierson finds the film visually ravishing and endlessly watchable, but says it offers little of real life. He singles out its striking compositions and atmospheric score for praise, while criticizing its dull central character and thin story.
Read the full review →The page appears to be the publication’s review, but its text is inaccessible. No verdict or specific praise or complaint can be verified from the supplied page.
Read the full review →E
Eye for Film
29 July 2013 · Robert Munro
60*
Munro finds the film deliberately difficult and often incoherent, but says it has moments of breathtaking clarity. He praises the foreboding score and the vividly saturated imagery of Bangkok.
Read the full review →H
HeyUGuys
23 May 2013 · ★★ · Craig Skinner
40
The critic finds the film dull, empty, and far less compelling than Drive. They praise its handsome visuals, Cliff Martinez’s score, and Kristin Scott Thomas’s darkly comic performance, while faulting the thin story and Gosling’s somnambulistic acting.
Read the full review →S
The Skinny
2 August 2013 · ★★ · Chris Buckle
40
Buckle finds the film disappointingly close to failure, despite its stylish execution. He praises its meticulously designed frames and neon-drenched atmosphere, but criticizes the ponderous dialogue and numbing violence.
Read the full review →W
The Wrap
22 May 2013 · festival review
10*
The critic finds the film soulless and shallow, despite its striking visual style. They single out Kristin Scott Thomas’s performance for praise, while condemning the violence as empty spectacle.
Read the full review →Ordered by the weight we give each publication, then by score. Scores are normalised to 100; * means inferred from an unrated review. Summaries are ours, not quotations; follow the links for the reviews themselves. How we rate