‘Her Private Hell’ is Totally Out to Lunch

July 20, 2026

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When Private Hells go Public (CREDIT: NEON)

Starring: Sophie Thatcher, Charles Melton, Havana Rose Liu, Kristine Froseth, Shioli Kutsuna, Aoi Yamada, Dougray Scott, Diego Calva, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Parker Sawyers

Director: Nicholas Winding Refn

Running Time: 110 Minutes

Rating: R for Stylized But Certainly Bloody Violence, and Some Sexual Content and Language Under a Similarly Stylized Veneer

Release Date: July 24, 2026 (Theaters)

What’s It About?: A veteran actress named Elle (Sophie Thatcher) meets an up-and-comer named Hunter (Kristine Froseth) who is set to co-star with her in an upcoming production. Hunter is eager to soak up everything Elle has to teach her, and she’s also enamored with Elle’s famous dad Johnny Thunders (Dougray Scott), who’s back in town with his new wife Dominique (Havana Rose Liu), who’s about the same age as Elle. They’re all staying in a luxury hotel in Tokyo that stretches into the clouds and seems to exist on another plane of existence entirely. It might sound like a lavish life of wonder, but they’re also right in the crosshairs of a mystical killer known as the Leather Man. Meanwhile, an investigator known as Private K (Charles Melton) fights his way through the city’s criminal underground.

What Made an Impression?: Return of the Winding: After breaking through in Hollywood with 2011’s acclaimed Drive, Danish director Nicholas Winding Refn’s output has been famously divisive. I actually found his 2016 bizarre nightmare horror flick The Neon Demon to be quite a hoot, but I could see why it didn’t work for everyone. Now that he’s returned to feature films a decade later with Her Private Hell, my reaction is, “Wait a minute, was I really ever a fan of Refn in the first place?” Now’s a good time to practice my compartmentalization skills.
Turning on the Charm: In the first 20 minutes or so of HPH, I was kind of vibing along with the stylized faux-reality. Most of Elle and Hunter’s repartee is profoundly shallow, but there are a few lines that have a bit of a satirical edge to them or enough pseudo-philosophical heft to sufficiently amuse me. So yeah, I must admit that I laughed, and I cannot deny that Refn’s whole impish deal can still hold its sway over me, at least in spurts.
It Was Nice Knowing Ya: At a certain point, though, my mind drifted about as far away from what was happening on the screen as possible. I lost the plot, and I wasn’t one bit interested in rediscovering it. But what is this plot that I speak of, when truly Her Private Hell can only boast of a facsimile of typical storytelling? This whole assemblage could have been pretty memorable as a music video. But as a feature length endeavor? It’s only memorable for how forgettable it is.

Her Private Hell is Recommended If: You’re still 100% in on NWR stock and nothing has ever convinced you otherwise

Grade: 2 out of 5 Leather Men

‘Babylon’ is an Overlong, Overexcited Warping of ‘Singin’ in the Rain’

December 16, 2022

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Babble on! (CREDIT: Scott Garfield/Paramount Pictures)

Starring: Margot Robbie, Brad Pitt, Diego Calva, Jean Smart, Jovan Adepo, Li Jun Li, Lukas Haas, Max Minghella, Samara Weaving, Olivia Wilde, Katherine Waterston, Flea, Jeff Garlin, Olivia Hamilton, P.J. Byrne, Rory Scovel, Eric Roberts, Tobey Maguire

Director: Damien Chazelle

Running Time: 188 Minutes

Rating: R for Bacchanalian Partying, Sudden Bloody Ends, and a Few Bumps of the Hard Stuff

Release Date: December 23, 2022 (Theaters)

What’s It About?: It’s the 1920s, and Hollywood is Big Business. And when they’re not making movies, it’s basically a non-stop party. But danger also lurks around every corner. With the talkie era looming, Nellie LaRoy (Margot Robbie) is ready to be a supernova, Jack Conrad (Brad Pitt) is hoping to stay relevant, trumpeter Sidney Palmer (Jovan Adepo) wants to be treated with respect, and dozens of other folks also have their skin in the game. There will be a rise! There will be a fall! There will be an epilogue! You know how it goes.

What Made an Impression?: If you’re thinking that this premise sounds a lot like Singin’ in the Rain, well, writer-director Damien Chazelle doesn’t make any effort to hide that influence. Babylon is essentially the answer to the question, “What if Singin’ in the Rain had ten more storylines and a hundred more exposed private parts?” If that sounds like overkill to you, I would advise you to trust your instincts. The jazz is great, though. Chazelle absolutely knows how to assemble a musical montage.

Babylon‘s next biggest influence, weirdly enough, appears to be the grossest of gross-out comedies in the vein of the Farrelly brothers, as mass quantities of bodily fluids spurt out unexpectedly in all directions on multiple occasions. Within the first five minutes, an elephant excretes what appears to be an entire week’s worth of its meals. A little later, the fanciest of fancy parties is ruined by a heaping helping of projectile vomit. Chazelle’s timing when it comes to yukking it up aren’t on quite the same level as his musical skills. I’m not sure if these moments are meant to be hilarious, tragic, or just plain matter-of-fact.

There are also a lot of deaths in Babylon, and most of them are given exactly zero seconds to investigate the consequences. I’m not surprised that movie set workplace safety wasn’t exactly a top priority a hundred years ago, but it can only work as a punchline so often in this sort of overstimulated movie. After a certain point, it’s just alarming without examining what happens afterward. Babylon is filled with inexplicable decisions, is what I’m trying to say.

Babylon is Recommended If You Like: Being Overstimulated

Grade: 2.5 out of 5 Parties