Interview: Filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn and Star Charles Melton Talk Inspirations for the Very Distinctive ‘Her Private Hell’

You know a Nicolas Winding Refn film when you see it. Whether that’s a positive or a negative is up to you, but over the course of his career, and especially from Bronson on, he’s felt like one of the more distinctive auteurs out there. Now, Drive is a modern masterpiece, and almost intentionally, Refn has never made anything quite like that since. In fact, it’s almost an outlier at this point. With Her Private Hell, Refn is back making a movie for the first time in about a decade. So, even while being somewhat mixed on the flick, I knew I wanted to have another conversation with him, as we’ve always had interesting chats. Last week, we made that happen, alongside cast member Charles Melton. Today, I bring that conversation to you all.

In my review of the movie (here), I spoke of Melton and Refn like so:

Charles Melton and Sophie Thatcher are the cast highlights. Melton doesn’t have much dialogue, but he has a presence to him that jives well with Refn’s vision. Much like how Ryan Gosling just fit in well with NWR, so too does Melton.

Nicolas Winding Refn, working here with co-writer Esti Giordani, crafts something equally fascinating and frustrating, which I think he would wear as a badge of honor. There are elements of The Neon Demon here, as well as, perhaps surprisingly, bits that reminded me of Only God Forgives. Refn’s visuals, at times intentionally fuzzy and at other times deeply drenched in neons, is still very striking, as are the sudden bursts of violence. Refn the director is doing his greatest hits here, in a way.

Below, you can see my discussion with Melton and Refn. The film is one that fascinated me, even while also frustrating me, as mentioned above, and it’s something neither man shied away form. You can find Melton talking about his trust in Refn, as well as Refn explaining how this particular project came to life. Her Private Hell could only have been made by NWR, so if only for that, listening to him talk about the genesis of the flick is rather compelling. Hitting theaters tomorrow, the movie is, at the absolute worst, a real curiosity. If you like Refn, you’ll certainly be on board with what he’s doing here.

Here now is my interview with Her Private Hell filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn and star Charles Melton. Enjoy:

Her Private Hell is in theaters this weekend!