THE NEON DEMON (2016)

USA-Denmark-France. Direction: Nicolas Winding Refn. Production: Lene Børglum, Sidonie Dumas, Vincent Maraval / Space Rocket Nation, Vendian Entertainment, Bold Films. Screenplay: Nicolas Winding Refn, Mary Laws, Polly Stenham. Photography: Natasha Braier. Music: Cliff Martinez. Edition: Matthew Newman. Cast: Elle Fanning, Karl Glusman, Jena Malone, Keanu Reeves, Christina Hendricks. Running time: 117 min

LANGUAGE: English / SUBTITLES: Spanish

At Cannes, they didn't nickname it "narcissist", but rather "onanist". No matter, The Neon Demon isn't a film for the Croisette, and the people hiding out in the Grand Auditorium Lumière aren't able to understand Nicolas Winding Refn's twisted, yet splendid soul and camera, even if he was proclaimed Best Director for Drive (2011). No, The Neon Demon is for us, the ones who know how to recognise one of their own kind. For us, unrepentant aesthetes fascinated by frozen beauties such as Elle Fanning (and all the rest). For those of us who know that beauty is meant to be devoured, and meant to devour you. Nicolas and Elle's film is bursting with dark energy, penetrating the icy palace of fashion, dragging us down to a sumptuous, vampiric abyss.