Too Old to Die Young (TV Mini Series) Volume 4: The Tower (2019) User Reviews

Facism!

[sackofwhine · 9/10 · 11 May 2020]

This was my favorite of the four episodes thus far. The characters are now clearly developed and together with the satirical view on the american mentality and the general mood and feel of the show, this combines almost everything good from the previous episodes. I feel like NWR is starting to shift gears and wants to let the beast out any second now.

The performances are all so pitch perfect, no one feels really out of place. Everyone inhabits the world created by Refn beautifully.

Consistently more intriguing

[darkreignn · 9/10 · 23 January 2021]

Episode four of "Too Old to Die Young" continues the momentum from the previous three episodes, further cascading its characters in neon lights, blood, and surreal situations.

I'm finding it difficult to review this series without mild spoilers, so from here on out I will discuss some plot elements in more detail, which will contain slight spoilers while not ruining any specific surprises the show may or may not throw at you.

This episode more closely follows Miles Teller's character as he spirals down down a rabbit hole of violence as he partakes in his side job: murder for money. Of course, we as an audience are never sure if the people he is killing necessarily deserve what's coming to them, but the thing is, neither does he - and watching his character become increasingly conflicted over this is certainly fascinating. This fuels his desire to want to kill only people who he feels have it coming to them, and it's interesting to watch him navigate through these newfound emotions when previously his mindset toward killing was so nonchalant.

Additionally, the world feels a lot more fleshed out now, with comedy that balances the dark tone and stone-faced characters; there's a hilarious scene in particular where Miles' character is at work attending an employee meeting, and everyone around him is cheering on their supervisor as he plays the ukulele, and Miles just sits there, silent, slightly smirking at the ridiculousness of it all. It's a charming scene that works surprisingly well, showing that Nicolas Winding Refn (NWR) also has a good eye for humor.

There's a lot more action in this episode, and by action, I mean brutal murders. Of course they are all shot well, the framing so beautiful in contrast to the bloody violence. What I appreciated about the scenes of murder in this episode was that nothing felt gratuitous - it wasn't overly violent, and the camera never lingered. Also, Refn does a great job of building suspense in a number of different scenes - one scene, especially, where Miles tracks down someone he is tasked with killing is masterfully done, with visuals and sound combing together so perfectly that you'll be on the edge of your seat.

"Too Old to Die Young" is really coming together. Every episode becomes increasingly interesting, with the world of the show consistently more believable. I can now firmly say I am enjoying this show, and would definitely recommend it to others.

Good episode.

[LegendaryFang56 · 8/10 · 26 July 2021]

What stuck out to me the most was the dialogue. It was more...there and prominent than in the previous episodes. Fewer lingering shots were passing the time and using up a good amount of the runtime. For the first time, it felt like a story.

Martin is growing as a character. He's starting to become more considerate, not prone to blindly do what is asked of him, starting to ask questions more genuinely, actually wanting to know. He's starting to feel real, or more real.

In the premiere, it didn't feel that way. It felt like he was just there, out of convenience, playing a character instead of being one. Now, he's starting to develop. I think Viggo played and is playing a big part in that. If it weren't for him, Martin would still be the characterless, bottomless pit of nothing that he was in the premiere.

the illusion of moral superiority

[sjsufan-4 · 10/10 · 18 June 2019]

I am loving this series so far. each episode adds more and more depth to the world and the characters in it. this episode gives us a deeper look into Viggo and why he does what he does. he takes Martin under his wing and reveals that he was once technically dead for 3 full minutes and came back with a sense of clarity.

theres a high sense of irony in Martin setting out to kill people when he himself is sexually active with a girl who is underage. this harkens back to the line in the previous episode about the dichotomy of personality. not only is Martin hiding his assasinations from the police force he works for, but he is now hiding his own sins from this hitman who seeks to drive out sin.

Martin is no hero and his sense of morals is exceedingly warped but it seems he's trying to change or maybe just lie to himself which is why he tracked Viggo in the first place.

i'm sure all my ten star ratings may be obnoxious to some but i genuinely feel this is top of the line television. you may not agree and you're entitled to that but i'm merely expressing my true feelings. if i felt the episode wasnt up to par my rating would reflect that.

anyways it was awesome to see Hideo Kojima show up even if he doesn't do much. it makes me excited to see NWR in Kojima's upcoming Death Stranding. also, John Hawkes continues giving an absolutely riveting performance and i cannot wait to see where his character goes

The First of Three Stronger Episodes: Marginally Less Boring!

[ThomasMuf · 5/10 · 21 July 2019]

TOTDY is a pretentious, self-indulgent, narcissistic,navel-gazing, misogynistic, slow-moving mess that does look great but offers nothing in the way of plot, character development, nuance, real tension or, indeed, meaning. It's what happens when a studio (Amazon Prime) just hands out money to a self-professed auteur without any restrictions. So far, so bad.

Episode 4 is the first of the series' three strongest entries. Relatively speaking, of course. There's a reason why Nicholas Winding Refn only showed episodes 4 & 5 at the Cannes Film Festival: They're the least-worst paced, the least mind-numbingly repetitive, the least plotless, and the least excruciatingly pretentious. They could almost be considered entertaining. Almost.

Again, it's up to the character actors to divert you from the roboticism of the leads (the latter instructed to act that way our brilliant director). Babs Olusanmokun maintains a strong screen presence as the dark (literally and figuratively) overlord, and William Baldwin gives the best performance as Janey's maybe-not-quite-so-protective dad. William Baldwin. You read that correctly. He gives the best performance. Do you remember William Baldwin ever having given the best performance in ANYthing? No? Me neither. But he does here. Which should give you a hint as to the quality of the rest of the performances. But it's Refn who's at fault here. He obviously has no feel for English dialogue, nor any idea how to coach actors.

Anyway, if you've made it this far, there are two of the better episodes ahead. It's not saying much, I know.

I might have figured this out

[silverton-37959 · 2/10 · 6 August 2021]

My theory, based on this episode, is that the director is trying to fill a niche in categories of films which has been neglected for many years. The category is films for people who can't read subtitles quickly enough to keep up with the dialog.

Refn may be overdoing it with the pace of dialog. I imagine that there are a few people who find the pace too slow, and still yet a few more who are still having to pause streaming or even skip back 10 seconds in order to keep up.

It's entirely possible that Refn's next project will address those problems. His fans will just have to be patient. As far as I can tell, Refn is the only director who is even trying to serve those afflicted with this slow reading disorder.