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Kill List
| Released |
2 September 2011 |
| Director |
Ben Wheatley |
Starring
|
Neil Maskell, Myanna Buring, Harry Simpson, Michael Smiley, Emma Fryer |
| Writer(s) |
Amy Jump, Ben Wheatley |
| Producer(s) |
Claire Jones, Andrew Starke |
| Origin |
United Kingdom |
| Running Time |
95 minutes |
| Genre |
Horror, thriller |
| Rating |
18 |
|
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Frighteningly good.
Walkouts and fainting spells are jolly good publicity for a horror film. From Dracula in 1931, through Psycho and The Exorcist, a good swoon has proven good for business. Even outside of the horror genre, Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours saw a huge upswing in media coverage after some patrons had a nasty reaction to the improvised amputation. If, like me, you question the validity of these fainting spells then let me direct you to Ben Wheatley’s Kill List. This is a film that managed to turn me, something of a hardened horror aficionado, into a nervous wreck. The feeling began slowly in the pit of my stomach. The tension was getting too much and all I could think about was getting out of that cinema screen (it was similar to the feeling induced by Michael Keaton’s Mulitplicity but for different reasons). Dedicated to the cause though, I hung in there. And let me stress, it’s worth the effort. Kill List is quite brilliant; a hugely skilful film that melds horror with kitchen sink drama and very of the moment social commentary.
The film begins in a tone that dominates low budget English films since Mike Leigh first picked up a camera. In a suburban house, a couple, Jay and Shel, fight over money while their young son listens. We learn that Jay (Neil Maskell) is an Iraq veteran, who has been earning his living as part of a two man hit team with friend Gal (Michael Smiley, a world away from playing Tyres in Spaced). Faced with money troubles, the duo accept a job from a seriously creepy man and are given a list of three victims.
At first then, Kill List appears to be just another British crime drama. Around the edges though, things are already unsettling- the eerie soundtrack, the jumpy editing and the introduction of some seriously creepy characters all point the film off in a completely different direction than it initially seemed to be going. Wheatley continues to wrong foot the audience throughout the film, as Jay begins to engage in increasingly erratic behaviour and we begin to doubt if what he is experiencing is reality. This uncertainty, coupled with the extremely naturalistic performances make the film almost unbearably tense and frightening. On top of this, there is some truly staggering violence here that is so well done as to be genuinely distressing.
If you think you are made of stern stuff, then Kill List is a must-see. A powerful, genre-straddling film that clings and chills like freezing fog.
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Linda O’Brien |
