© NEON
Sophie Thatcher in Her Private Hell (2026)
Sophie Thatcher in 'Her Private Hell' (2026)
Her Private Hell
(In Theaters July 24)
In his latest work, Danish writer-director Nicolas Winding Refn forgoes a coherent narrative in favor of exploring his vision of high art. Sophie Thatcher appears as Elle. An up-and-coming actress, she arrives, in a futuristic metropolis, to star in a science fiction film. She also hopes to find her missing father, actor-playboy Johnny Thunders (Dougray Scott). Elle and other young actresses (including Havana Rose Liu and Kristine Froseth) occupy the upper floors of a fog-enshrouded high-rise where their avant-garde eye makeup proves irresistible to serial killer “The Leather Man.” In a parallel story, G.I. Private K (Charles Melton) prepares to battle The Leather Man. Dreamscape visuals offer certain rewards, but the film’s slow pace, and the story’s failure to make it all make sense, present ongoing challenges. (Lisa Miller)
Normal
(Magnolia Entertainment DVD/Blu-ray)
Bob Odenkirk, the jovially crooked attorney from “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul,” plays an honest cop in Normal (2025). He’s received a temporary appointment as sheriff in the small Minnesota town called Normal, a snow-covered Fargo of the heartland. Everyone (just about) is Midwest nice, smiling and waving as he passes by. “Life’s a little easier if you care a little less,” he says to himself. It’s an eight-week appointment until election day and he aims to make no waves. Pretty soon he’s engulfed in a tsunami of problems.
The sheriff suspects something’s not right with the place—pockets of conspicuous spending and affluence amidst the half-deserted storefronts. Soon enough, he realizes that the recently deceased sheriff and the local oligarchs struck a deal long ago with the Japanese mob and corruption has seeped into the brickwork of Normal. What begins as comedy flecked with tragedy turns to carnage. Odenkirk cowrote the story. Milwaukee favorite Henry Winkler plays Normal’s mayor. (David Luhrssen)
