Pusher II: With Blood on My Hands

Perennial fuck-up Tonny is back on the streets of Denmark after doing some time in a rare sequel that's just as engaging as its predecessor. Though slightly more rewarding for those who have seen the first Pusher, the film really stands on its own and can safely be seen without having seen the first.

A marked improvement upon its predecessor. You can see Winding-Refn's already got a grasp on the unique qualities of digital photography. The film is scuzzy (we're talking French Connection levels here) and it would fade into obscurity as a standard "tough guy" flick if it didn't wind up having so much heart.

A morality tale placed in a setting of utmost depravity, Pusher II delves a little deeper than appearances would indicate.

A brilliant follow up to the original Pusher, With Blood on My Hands sees Mads Mikkelsen reprising the role of Tony, as he negotiates life after his recent release from prison. The road to respect is a dark one.

What a huge improvement this is over the first installment. The family drama at the center goes a long, long way towards helping this film transcend its rather standard gangster storyline; it all feels like a more urgent and potent affair.

I'd say it is the first Refn movie where his style manages to takes over those of his influencers. It is less comical, more realistic, by far darker and the boundaries of cynicism are pushed forward. You would expect that from a Danish cinema now, wouldn't you, them being the happiest people on earth and all? Still, it is oversimplified and the ending doesn't deliver at all. The movie lacks depth to be really something other than the documentary of lowlifes that you might just not care about.

Mads Mikkelsen is one of the greatest actors working today.

Refn continues to slowly approach his peak, this time with a script that coalesces much more tightly around its central fuckup character and a bit more of that gritty direction present in Bleeder. Still a ways to go but the progress is there.

??? ????? ???? ?- ?? ???? ???? ???? ???? ???- ?????? ?? ????????? ???? ?? ?? ????? ???? ???? ? ??? ??? ???????? ???????? ? ????? ?? ?????? ?????? ???? ???? ? ????? ????? ?? ?????? ??? - ???? ??? ?????? ??? ????? ?????

The best script of the three. I have some intangible problem with Mikkelsen and his acting that brings the experience down, though.

I dunno, just didn't work for me.

Tonny is a mix of Camus' Mersault (the Arab reference and he shoots his friend's arm just because he wants so) and Jesus. Because he makes some existential chocies after being released from prison at the end of which he experiences a purge like of Jesus by being tormented by his loved ones. He becomes the "father" by killing his father, his "son" is the only thing he loves and he finds the "holy spirit" through his experiences and sails off to a new life at the end.

Another very well executed film. The director's use of music and audio cues is particularly good; they contribute most to the build-up of tension and emotion. The film is carried on an effective, nuanced performance from the lead, expanding greatly on a relatively minor character and personality from the original film. If you enjoyed the first, see this one ASAP.

Maybe the best part, maybe ?!?!

Amazing title

A little less neo-neo-realist-ic, but some good scenes. Seems to be Refn's ERASERHEAD in the sense of being an expression of anxiety, if not horror, about incipient fatherhood. There's no doubt the non-professional actors do well.

86.000

Can definitely stand up to the original. Much darker themewise, which makes it a painful and powerful viewing experience.

Father - son issue. Not the best sequel. 1st and the 3rd film of the trilogy are better for sure.

Great film.

Mads Mikkelsen illustrates his acting range in this dramatic portrait of a low-level gangster. Frankly, it's a welcome departure from the first movie, which despite the innovative style and twisting pacing tread on familiar narrative ground. Here, Refn unlocks a deeper complexity in drug culture and the outsized influence of the filial in crime. A great piece of filmmaking that gets even better with Pusher III.

Refn revisits the style and milieu of his first film, and unexpectedly gets it slighter better the second time, mostly due to Mikkelsen's superior lead performance and Refn's growing experience behind the camera.

good movie

An extremely gritty but at once controlled and human crime drama. It's almost tangible that NWR became a family-man in the years between Pusher I and this. The handheld shooting draws less attention to itself, and the visual compositions are lusher. The writing is worlds better. Wiseguys are not really a fresh concept, but here they're much more interesting than the stock characters of Drive.

Not as gritty, brooding and real as the original but a lot more uplifting and with Tonny, being handled greatly by Mads Mikkelsen, at the center Pusher 2 is honestly more of a movie than its predecessor. However, it also foregoes some of the great direction and camerawork the first had in the process. The ending is a fantastic lid on the escalating narrative in the movie; really, Pusher 2 holds as much merit as the first one did despite its miniscule shortcomings. Another well-made Refn film.

Pretty good sequel, alhough it feels a bit shorter than the first one.