Nicolas Winding Refn did an incredible job with Drive. Elevating a strong script with an incendiary sense of the foreboding and directing Ryan Gosling to a career best turn. Then he went and made bleedin’ Only God Forgives and made us question everything we liked about him before.
He's now, according to Heat Vision, in negotiations to direct the murder flick, The Bringing, which is set in L.A.’s Cecil Hotel, a real gaff known for dodgy goings on. The flick will centre on the discovery of a body at the hotel, that of Elisa Lam, who was found dead in a water tank. The below video circulated online, showcasing some strange behaviour before her body was found on the roof, became a beacon for conspiracy theories.
The script was written on spec, which means it wasn’t developed by a studio, by writers Brandon and Phillip Murphy - with a bidding war then ensuing.
As much as studio interference can mess up productions, Refn seems like a talent (and he IS a talent) who may benefit from reigning in - even in the short term. And this is a fascinating story.
