Ronit J

Pusher Trilogy (1996-2005) Synopsis:

• Pusher (1996): A drug pusher grows increasingly desperate after a botched deal leaves him with a large debt to a ruthless drug lord.
• Pusher II (2004): Tonny is released from prison – again. This time he has his mind set on changing his broken down life, but that is easier said than done.
• Pusher III (2005): Milo is aging, he is planning his daughter’s 25th birthday, and his shipment of heroin turns out to be 10,000 pills of ecstasy. When Milo tries to sell the pills anyway, all Hell breaks loose and his only chance is to ask for help from his ex-henchman and old friend Radovan.

Pusher Trilogy (1996-2005) Review:

Her Private Hell (2026) was all over my feed in May because of its screening at Cannes. One of the videos that stood out to me was where the cast talked about their favourite Nicolas Winding Refn movies. While I loved Drive (2011), I never really got around to watching any of his other films. That, coupled with the posters that the video showed, led me to go on an impromptu Nicolas Winding Refn binge. Over the course of one weekend, I watched the Pusher Trilogy, as well as Bronson.

Another video described The Pusher Trilogy as Copenhagen Rot, a dark and harshly real exploration of the fictional Danish underworld of drugs and crime. Part 1 follows Frank (Kim Bodnia) as he loses a massive shipment of heroin and now owes a huge amount of money to crime lord, Milo (Zlatko Burić). Part 2 follows Frank’s friend, Tonny (Mads Mikkelsen), as he is released from prison. He attempts to join his father’s crime family, but struggles with his conflicting feelings of wanting to change his life for the better. And lastly, Part 3 follows an aging Milo over the course of a single day as he struggles with younger competition and withdrawal from drug abstinence.

Overall, I absolutely loved the Trilogy’s immersive atmosphere and realistic depiction of each and every character.

Pusher (1996)

Frank is a lowlife drug pusher who’s more or less living a happening life. He parties with his friend Tonny, and enjoys his power and position in the crime world. However, all that glamour is just a weak facade that hides a darker truth. The moment that Frank goes into debt, it takes him less than 24 hours to completely ruin his life. That’s how fragile a life of crime is. Even the glamorous portions of the film’s beginning have a character of nastiness to them. It’s not like Frank is a good boyfriend or even a good person. That somehow makes Frank’s misfortunes feel justified, like karma.

Visually, this is the grittiest of the lot. After all, this was Refn & Mikkelsen’s debut film. Made on a measly budget, it uses some pretty ingenious cinematic cheats. However, what it manages to create well despite the production’s limitations is the atmosphere and vibe. Add to that the complex character of Frank, and you have yourself an insanely entertaining watch that’s also layered and immersive. I get why this film was so popular. Not only does it succeed in telling an exciting, thrilling story. It does so, whilst taking you through this deeply emotional and personal journey for Frank, which involves facing his irredeemably flawed personality.

The end is somewhat open, but even that works in favour of the film. There are several possibilities to what might happen next, and not a single one of them bodes well for Frank. On the contrary, Vic (Laura Drasbæk) gets her escape from this underworld, meaning that the one pure character in this film actually meets with a happy ending. Meanwhile, the crooks and cruel ones all face some or the other semblance of loss.

Pusher II (2004)

Mads Mikkelsen as Tonny was a delight to watch. He isn’t the brightest in the lot. Neither is he cunning or crafty. At first, he’s only trying to live up to his father’s legendary status. However, as the film progresses, you realise that no one in Tonny’s life cares for him. Not his father, Smeden or The Duke (Leif Sylvester), not his friend, Kurt the Cunt, not even the mother of his child. As much as he wants to do good in his career as a criminal, the film forces him to reflect on what it would actually mean to have a good life.

Made eight years after the first film, you can really see Refn’s growth as a filmmaker in this one. The visuals have seriously upgraded, looking like a proto-version of the refined aesthetics we’ve seen in Drive and his subsequent films. The use of saturated colours and light to set the mood was an added touch of seediness that builds on the gritty atmosphere established in the first part. While the plot did many callbacks to the original, the film manages to hold its own ground. That to me is a big win, especially for a sequel. Few sequels manage to outdo their original entries, and to me, Pusher 2 (2004) was a far superior film to Pusher (1996).

Pusher 2 had everything that I loved about Pusher, but with far superior writing, character work, and visual treatment. All of this led to a superbly memorable watch.

Pusher III (2005)

This one was by far my favourite of the three films. From Milo’s intermittent attendance at the Drug Addiction support group meetings, to his burgeoning stress over the course of the day as he deals with younger competition, his daughter’s birthday party, as well as his urge to use… Pusher 3 was a slow burn that was much more impactful. If Pusher 2 was a significant upgrade, Pusher 3 is near-perfection. From the tight setting and plot, to the profound exploration of Milo’s character and worldview, Pusher 3 does everything right. Admittedly, the visuals to me did feel a tad less artistic than Pusher 2. However, the refined and mature character work more than makes up for that.

We see Milo—the near untouchable crime lord from the first two films—now become the very thing that he terrorises before: an unlucky chap at the receiving end of a bad hand. Like Frank, he is left in debt. Like Tonny, he is made to feel stupid. However, Milo is a hardened criminal with decades of experience. Despite his urge to use, his age, his stress, and the chaos of catering for a party, he manages to hold his own. Ultimately, the hardened criminal comes out on top, but at what cost? He misses his daughter’s party, all the while coming to terms with the fact that he came so close to losing it all. While he got lucky that one time, the next one might just end up being his last.

Pusher 3 was the perfect ending to this trilogy. Part 1 ends with the protagonist succumbing to the pressure. Part 2 ends with the protagonist breaking free from this world. And Part 3 ends with the protagonist still holding his top position, whilst knowing it is only temporary. A beautifully twisted summation of a life of crime, seen through the artistic lens of Nicolas Winding Refn’s direction and Morten Søborg’s cinematography.

Is the Pusher Trilogy (1996-2005) worth watching?

Yes. However, keep in mind that these movies were made on small budgets a long time ago (damn, I feel old). The low quality of some visuals actually add to the grit and grime of the film’s atmosphere. In fact, if you’re a fan of Niholas Winding Refn’s work, The Pusher Trilogy is a must watch.

In Conclusion:

The Pusher Trilogy is brilliantly gritty and atmospheric series of crime thrillers with complex characters that make for a memorable viewing experience.

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