CHICAGO – In the last several years, how many times have you wanted to shout the “Mad as Hell” movie quote? Well, Invictus Theatre Co. has produced a stage adaptation of “Network” – with that quote shout worthy – at the Windy City Playhouse in Chicago through September 29th. For tickets/details, click HOWARD BEALE.
Film Review: Stylish, Bizarre ‘Kill List’ Challenges Genre Preconceptions
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CHICAGO – Ben Wheatley’s “Kill List” comes to U.S. shores on a tidal wave of hype and controversy. Is it the work of a genre-defying genius or an inconsistent jerk? Are the film’s jarring tonal shifts effective or idiotic? Honestly, and I know critics aren’t supposed to say this, I can see both sides of the argument. On one hand, Wheatley take some serious risks here and some of them are to be admired. On the other, “Kill List” often feels disjointed and weird just for the sake of weird. It just barely works for me by virtue of its audacity but I wouldn’t be surprised if it doesn’t do the same for you.
“Kill List” is at least three films in one. It’s designed to light message boards on fire as to what it’s “really about” and the hidden meanings of a film that seems relatively straightforward at first and ends anything but. The first act seems like a standard British drama with a squabbling couple in increasingly dire financial straits. Jay (Neil Maskell) is a former soldier who is now a hitman. Clearly, something recently went very poorly on one of his jobs and the mental stress has turned him into something of a prick. He yells at his wife (MyAnna Buring) and seems distant when he’s not abusive.
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One night, his friend and hitman partner Gal (Michael Smiley) comes over for dinner with a woman named Fiona (Emma Fryer). The mundane situation turns angry relatively quickly and Gal reveals that he has a new job for his troubled friend. It will require three murders. Before she leaves, Fiona goes in the bathroom and carves what looks like a satanic symbol on the back of the mirror, hinting at weirdness to come.
The relatively straight drama now becomes a sometimes ultra-violent hitman movie with an odd undercurrent. Jay’s first target is a priest who thanks him for shooting him in the head. His second is a librarian for child pornographers who also thanks Jay as he’s getting brutalized in ways that should have some theatre goers heading for the door. Hammer meets knees. Hammer meets fingers. Hammer meets head. Tarantino would say it’s too violent. And then “Kill List” gets truly wonky as the final act turns into a horror movie in ways that I not only wouldn’t spoil but that I’m not sure I can fully relay. Let’s just say it gets WEIRD and I think it’s that oddity in the final act that has given the film the hype it brings stateside. “Kill List” has cult movie written all over it.
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Kill List
Photo credit: IFC Films