Thomas Muf is the type of person who writes reviews about things he hates, he hates seeing things that don't fit his classical view of TV entertainment, he hates how preposterous and over the top Refn is, he just can't stand this pretentiousness, he hates it! Yet, he still decided to watch the whole thing and review every single episode in detail. Well, you can say you hated it, but you can't say that it didn't give you an emotional reaction.
Refn was never a person of subtle genius, he can be very articulate in his audiovisual presentation and themes, however I never had the impression that he tried to be overly cryptic as to suggest some sort of Lynchian storytelling. He is blunt when he wants to be, and thats what I appreciate about him. His mind tells him that this feels right and that this should be presented in this way, even when formally it should not work- to me it does.
The Wagner scene is such a case where some might have a problem with it but to me it is perfect. The purest form of cinema- the use of sound, visuals and theme to create a powerful message. It might not be subtle but its still ever so memorable.
