My Life Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn

After the success of Drive, Nicolas Winding Refn goes to Bangkok to make Only God Forgives. His wife Liv Corfixen and their two daughters come with him; the family lives in Thailand for six months. Corfixen picks up a camera and records the production: her husband's anxiety, her own loneliness, the children's schooling, and how the making of a film consumes a family's life. Corfixen's documentary is not behind-the-scenes promotional material. The narrative is interested not in how the film was shot but in the director's fear of failure; on camera Refn says plainly that he thinks the film will be bad. Ryan Gosling and Alejandro Jodorowsky appear in the footage. The advice Jodorowsky gives Refn is the film's most quoted moment. Who it's for: Anyone curious about portraits of directors, behind-the-scenes documentary, and Refn's cinema. Who it's not for: Context is missing for anyone who has not seen Only God Forgives. The narrative is also short and loose and reaches no conclusion.