Only God Forgives
Performance & Direction: Only God Forgives Review
Last updated: January 30, 2026
Quick Verdict: Hit or Flop?
Is Only God Forgives (2013) worth watching? According to our cinematic analysis, the film stands as a ABOVE AVERAGE with a verified audience rating of 5.8/10. Whether you're looking for the box office collection, ending explained, or parents guide, our review covers everything you need to know about this Drama.
Cast Performances: A Masterclass
The success of any Drama is often anchored by its ensemble, and Only God Forgives features a noteworthy lineup led by Ryan Gosling . Supported by the likes of Kristin Scott Thomas and Vithaya Pansringarm , the performances bring a palpable realism to the scripted words.
Performance Analysis: While the cast delivers competent and professional performances, they are occasionally hampered by a script that leans into familiar archetypes.
Final Verdict: Is it Worth Watching?
Story & Plot Summary: Only God Forgives
Quick Plot Summary: Only God Forgives is a Drama, Thriller, Crime film that explores complex human emotions and relationships through detailed character development. This summary provides a scannable look at the movie's central conflict and narrative structure.
Story Breakdown
This character-driven narrative explores the internal and external conflicts that define the human experience. Julian, who runs a Thai boxing club as a front organization for his family's drug smuggling operation, is forced by his mother Crystal to find and kill the individual responsible for his brother's recent death. The screenplay takes time to develop its characters, allowing audiences to connect emotionally with their struggles and triumphs. Each scene builds upon the last, creating a cumulative emotional impact.
Narrative Structure
- Opening Hook: We meet the main character in their ordinary world, establishing the emotional baseline before the inciting incident disrupts their life.
- Character Arc: Character development is present but somewhat formulaic, following familiar patterns without adding fresh perspectives to the genre.
- Climax & Resolution: The emotional climax brings character arcs to their natural conclusion, providing catharsis while staying true to the story's core themes.
Ending Explained: Only God Forgives
Ending Breakdown: Only God Forgives attempts to tie together its various plot elements. The finale presents its approach to drama resolution.
The final reveal recontextualizes earlier scenes, offering viewers material for post-viewing discussion.
Ending Analysis:
- Narrative Resolution: The story concludes by addressing its primary narrative threads, providing closure while maintaining some ambiguity.
- Character Arcs: Character journeys reach their narrative endpoints, reflecting the film's thematic priorities.
- Thematic Payoff: The ending reinforces the drama themes established throughout the runtime.
The final moments of Only God Forgives reflect the filmmakers' creative choices, offering an ending that aligns with the film's tone and style.
Only God Forgives Real vs. Reel: Is it Based on a True Story?
Only God Forgives incorporates elements from real criminal cases. As a drama, thriller, crime film, it navigates the space between factual accuracy and narrative engagement.
Historical Context
The film takes creative liberties to enhance dramatic impact. Core events maintain connection to source material while adapting for theatrical presentation.
Creative interpretation shapes the final narrative, focusing on emotional truth over strict chronology.
Accuracy Assessment: Only God Forgives adapts its source material for dramatic purposes. The film prioritizes thematic resonance over documentary precision.
Who Should Watch Only God Forgives?
Consider Watching If:
- You're a completist for Drama films
- You're curious despite mixed reviews
- You have low expectations and want casual entertainment
Box Office Collection: Only God Forgives
| Metric / Region | Collection (Approx) |
|---|---|
| Production Budget | $4.8M |
| Worldwide Gross | $10.3M |
| Trade Verdict | FINANCIAL DISAPPOINTMENT |
Only God Forgives Budget
The estimated production budget for Only God Forgives is $4.8M. This figure covers principal photography, talent acquisitions, and visual effects. When accounting for global marketing and distribution, the break-even point is typically 2x the base production cost.
Top Cast: Only God Forgives
All Cast & Crew →
Where to Watch Only God Forgives Online?
Streaming Hub🎟️ Rent on
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YouTube🏷️ Buy on
Google Play MoviesYouTubeOnly God Forgives Parents Guide & Age Rating
2013 AdvisoryWondering about Only God Forgives age rating or if it's safe for kids? Here is our cinematic advisory:
⏱️ Runtime & Duration
The total runtime of Only God Forgives is 89 minutes (1h 29m). Ensuring you have enough time for the full cinematic experience.
Verdict Summary
Analyzing the overall audience sentiment, verified rating of 5.8/10, and global performance metrics, Only God Forgives is classified as a ABOVE AVERAGE. It remains an essential part of the 2013 cinematic calendar.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Only God Forgives worth watching?
Only God Forgives is definitely worth watching if you enjoy Drama movies. It has a verified rating of 5.8/10 and stands as a ABOVE AVERAGE in our box office analysis.
Where can I find Only God Forgives parents guide and age rating?
The official parents guide for Only God Forgives identifies it as R. Our detailed advisory section above covers all content warnings for families.
What is the total runtime of Only God Forgives?
The total duration of Only God Forgives is 89 minutes, which is approximately 1h 29m long.
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Critic Reviews for Only God Forgives
It is an artistically very interesting movie. I would say that the benefit of watching this movie is entirely from the visuals were it excels. Unfortunately after a while the blood-red and, often, bizarre scenes become a bit boring. The story, well you have it in the movie blurb above. There is not much more to it and it is just used to tie the string of artistic expressions of the director/writer together. This is a quite violent movie. The old cop, Chang, gets more than one opportunity to use various sharp instruments, mostly his sword, on various criminal elements and the effects are frequently shown in all their gory glory. What about the actors and their performance? Well it is quite good for this type of movie but having said that the acting mostly consists of various people silently staring at each other. I had quite a bit of difficulty in deciding what rating I should give this movie. If I would go by the visuals only it should be very high but if I would go by the rest of the content it would be rather low. In the end I decided that although I appreciated the artwork I did not really like the movie as a whole that much. Thus it gets 5 out of 10 stars.
A challenging piece of cinema. Definitely not for everyone. The cinematography is breathtaking, and the violence is stomach turning. 8/10
It has all the ingredients that I'd usually love in a film, but the pacing lets it down for me. 'Only God Forgives' is pretty dark and strikingly gory, with the stylish cinematography really shining through to set the right tone. Ryan Gosling, meanwhile, is good in a role which is similar to his one in 2011's 'Drive', which was also directed by Nicolas Winding Refn. Kristin Scott Thomas is solid, though I couldn't get away from the thought that her character was made to be portrayed by Toni Collette. Vithaya Pansringarm plays it cool as his character. All in all, I enjoyed it. I just didn't love it. It's a little too stop/start for my liking, as in it felt like I was watching a series of events as opposed to a fully fleshed out plot; I don't mean that the scenes feel unconnected, it just feels like every scene is too much its own thing in terms of storytelling.
movieMx Verified
This review has been verified for accuracy and editorial quality by our senior cinematic analysts.
This analysis is compiled by our editorial experts using multi-source verification and audience sentiment data for maximum accuracy.
