Owing a bunch of money to some not so nice individuals, Chris is incredibly desperate to come up with the necessary cash or he is as good as dead. He goes to his father, Ansel, laying out a plan in which they will hire Joe Cooper, a cop who daylights as a hitman, to murder Chris' mother, who everyone hates. The idea is to collect the insurance money from her death but things don't exactly go as planned. William Friedkin's Killer Joe is a red neck crime story that is one of the most hysterical black comedies I have seen in a long time. Set in this red-neck small town in Texas, all the characters in this film are gross, filthy, dumb individuals who are essentially beyond any type of redemption, with the viewer just along for the ride. Going into too much detail will ruin the fun but Matthew McConaughey as Joe is down right delightful. He completely commands every scene he is in, with his calm and cool demeanor but when things go from bad to worse, particularly in the final act, he is explosively terrifying and a firecracker ready to explode. This is a brutal film with some very sick and twisted elements but I really cannot express just how damn funny it is. Friedkin never candy coats violence and this film is no different in its raw and unflinching depiction. The film takes a rather tepid slow burning approach early on setting up the characters and world but the last 30 minutes or so are probably the most fun I've had at the movies this year. Absolutely not for everyone but if twisted dark humor is your thing, Killer Joe should not be missed. 8.25/10
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AuthorLove of all things cinema brought me here. Archives
June 2023
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