Provocateur Nicolas Winding Refn has returned to his native Denmark after more than a decade away to direct the new Netflix series Copenhagen Cowboy, which will have its world debut at the present Venice Film Festival on September 9. A trailer for the programme, which is full of Refn’s trademark aesthetic, has also been released on the streaming service. The two-minute “trailer,” which is soaked in neon and set to banging techno music, doesn’t reveal anything about the narrative but rather sets the tone. Do you still think about the iconic trailer for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo that David Fincher helped create? This, though, is in a similar vein, albeit with more captivating visuals.
Lots of pigs, a martial arts sequence that we just catch a glimpse of, and cryo chambers. Characters shout and pose menacingly, while the setting shifts between the mundane and the fantastic. Copenhagen Cowboy, a supernatural vengeance odyssey starring an enigmatic young heroine, is a “continuation” of the topics that Refn initially tackled in his Prime Video series Too Old to Die, Young, as the director hinted at in an interview with Variety, suggesting that he has grown as a filmmaker.
According to him: It’s safe to say that “Too Old to Die Young” accurately foretold the state of affairs in Trump’s America. The programme reflected my current state of mind at the moment, including my preoccupations and the news I was exposed to. The story continues in the sequel, Copenhagen Cowboy. The six-part series, which he called “a fairy tale that represents everything around (us),” starring his daughters Lola and Lizzielou, and was executive produced by his wife, Liv Corfixen.
Through his company NWR, Refn also acts as a producer alongside Lene Borglum and Christina Bostofte Erritze. Sara Isabella Jönsson and Johanne Algren collaborated on the show’s writing; Magnus Nordenhof Jnck directed the episodes; and Cliff Martinez, Peter Peter, Peter Kyed, and Julian Winding composed the music. As a director, Refn is most recognised in Hollywood for his work on the stunning crime thriller Drive, which starred Ryan Gosling. He worked with the actor again in the stylish Only God Forgives and the similarly themed The Neon Demon, both of which were set in Bangkok. The director has been moving away from a realistic approach and toward a more fantastical one in recent years, and his latest picture, Copenhagen Cowboy, seems to be a perfect representation of this.
Synopsis
In Copenhagen Cowboy, Miu, a mysterious young woman, is the focus of a thrilling, neon-soaked noir series spanning six episodes. On the cusp of a fresh start after a lifetime of slavery, she makes her way through the seedy underbelly of Copenhagen. On her journey across the natural and supernatural worlds in search of justice and revenge, she crosses paths with her archenemy, Rakel. When the two ladies realise they are not alone and that there are many like them, their shared history changes and shapes their future.