Main Page
Alphabetical Menu
Chronological Menu
The "P" Menu
Release Date: August 18th, 2006 (Cinema Village) by Magnolia Pictures. The Cast: Zlatko Buric, Ilyas Agac, Marinela Dekic, Kujtim Loki, Ramadan Huseini, Slavko Labovic, Vasilije Bojivic. Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn. In Danish with subtitles. BASIC PREMISE: During his daughter’s 25th birthday party, Milo (Buric) struggles with his drug addiction and continues to enter the drug world. ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: Pusher III is an interesting character study of Milo, the drug baron, as his life tragically spirals downward all in one night. When he receives a shipment of ecstasy rather than heroin, he has no choice but to sell the drug even though he hasn’t sold that particular type of drug before. Of course, the plot gets more complicated when a young pusher he hires doesn’t show up with any money, which does lead to a surprising plot twist. Milo has so much going on during his daughter’s 25th birthday party that he eventually goes ballistic. Humorously, he goes to a session for drug addicts directly after taking drugs. At one point, he goes to a Chinese restaurant to place 40 orders of fried fish filets to quickly replace a party dish he had to throw away. The restaurant employee asks chubby Milo if he wants it “to stay” or “to go”. Zlatko Buric gives a strong and even a charismatic performance as Milo, who has to play the role of a father, husband, and powerful drug lord all in one night—it’s amazing how he doesn’t get schizophrenic. The later part of the second act is very difficult to watch when he helps to gut a rival drug lord. This vomit-inducing, gruesome gutting scene lasts too long and just comes across as perverse, shocking and over-the-top—fortunately, none of those characters are cannibals. Director Nicolas Winding Refn proves that, once again, he is a talented director who knows how to blend stark realism with memorable characters in an engaging story. If only that over-long gutting scene weren’t so unwatchable and distracting. SPIRITUAL VALUE: The final, haunting scene with Milo means a lot about his poor mental state. At this point in his life, he has been through a lot, he acknowledges his sins to some degree and he wants to change. However, he has become so accustomed both physically and mentally to the lifestyle of drugs and violence that any attempt to reach relative normalcy and stability in his life is simply futile. INSULT TO YOUR INTELLIGENCE: None. NUMBER OF TIMES I CHECKED MY WATCH: 1 IN A NUTSHELL: Darkly humorous, disturbing and haunting. RECOMMENDED WAY TO WATCH: Movie Theater (1st Run) Main Page Alphabetical Menu Chronological Menu The "P" Menu ______________________________________________________ |
The NYC Movie Guru
themovieguru101@yahoo.com
Privacy Policy