Pusher Trilogy (1996, 2004, 2005) 4K UHD & Blu-ray Limited Editions Review
Pusher Trilogy (1996, 2004, 2005) 4K UHD & Blu-ray Limited Editions Review
In the mid-90s, one-to-watch writer-director Nicolas Winding Refn exploded onto the scene with a powerful debut feature PUSHER – the brutal and gritty Danish film went on the earn critical acclaim and awards galore and put the young filmmaker firmly on the map. Along with two more films in the PUSHER series, he continued to carve out a hugely successful career with work including the seminal DRIVE, BRONSON, THE NEON DEMON and many more.
Now, almost 30 years on, Second Sight Films is set to bring all three of the seminal PUSHER films together in a stunning Box Set. The collection will be available in two versions – PUSHER Limited Edition 4K UHD and Pusher Limited Edition Blu-ray and includes restorations by director Nicolas Winding Refn, complete with a slew of special features. Both will be released on 15th September 2025.
The Limited-Edition Box Sets are presented in stunning rigid slipcases with new artwork by Thomas Walker plus a fascinating 120-page book, with new essays. Both versions come complete with a slew of special features including three brand new audio commentaries, a feature length documentary and much more.
PUSHER (1996)
A drug pusher grows increasingly desperate after a botched deal leaves him with a large debt to a ruthless drug lord.
Kim Bodnia stars as drug dealer Frank who runs afoul of a drug lord and as things escalate out of his control, he finds no support in his plight as both his sidekick Tonny (Mads Mikkelsen) and casual girlfriend Vic (Laura Drasbæk) ditch him to fend for himself. PUSHER started off life as a five-minute short which the director then made into a full-length independent film.
Shot entirely on hand-held cameras PUSHER captures the grubbiness of Frank’s surroundings in an almost documentary-style fashion. It reminds of a time when filmmakers weren’t afraid to make their mark on their own terms. It morphs into a violent chase movie during its latter stages coming to an abrupt, bleak end that satisfies.
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.
Narratively there’s nothing new about seeing an ex-convict looking to change his ways when released only to discover that his old life keeps pulling at him to return. Mikkelsen’s performance is multi-layered and realistic and complements the film’s ‘fly-on-the-wall’ approach. It makes for as compelling a watch as the original as does the film that comes next and concludes the trilogy.
PUSHER III (2005)
Milo tries to be a family man and run his criminal organisation, but a wrong drug shipment endangers everything.
Winding Refn pulls no punches with his concluding third film in the PUSHER Trilogy. As with Mikkelsen in the middle instalment, Zlatko Burić nails the world-weariness of Milo as he copes with another drug-based mishap that spirals out of control. It all ends with one of the grisliest scenes I have ever seen that proved yukky to my senses back at the time of this film’s release and still now almost twenty years later.
