Mirrors are everywhere in The Neon Demon; Models constantly applying and removing makeup, fixing their hair, flashing looks back at themselves, only the best for the runway. The film’s opening scene is a conversation that takes place between two reflections: those of Jesse, 16 and new to L.A., and Ruby, a makeup artist who takes Jesse under her wing. The women speak without truly seeing one another, talking at an image rather than the real thing. It’s easy to call this shallow symbolism, that the lack of authenticity in Hollywood is thematically stale, so obvious at this point that it need not be addressed ever again. But to the filmmaker, this is of no concern.
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