Killer Joe [Unrated DVD]

Killer Joe evokes the hardboiled regional poetry of Jim Thompson (pop. 1280, The Killer Inside Me) and William Faulkner (who supplies the poetic epigraph), flirts with outright exploitation, provides game actors with roles to relish, and finds the heart of darkness in a bucket of Fried Chicken.Their adaptation leaves the Tracy Lett's source play almost untouched. )Letts and Friedkin previously adapted Letts' play, Bug, with Ashley Judd and Michael Shannon.) A few choice locations open up the Dallas, Texas outskirts but the real meat and inevitable massacre still occur in the pressure-cooker confines of a family trailer home. Cinematographer Caleb Deschanel (Being There, The Right Stuff) employs a grease-stained Edward Hopper vibe refracted by tawdry and cartoonish fluorescents, and the atmosphere is all noir jazz bassline, thunderstorms, blazing trash-can fires, restless pitbulls, and Gina Gershon’s casual crotchbearing. Letts convinced Friedkin to preserve this charming introductory detail in an eight-page memo bearing the advice “Don’t be afraid of the p****.”Meet the Smiths: paterfamilias Ansel, played by a hysterical Thomas Haden Church (Sideways), an oaf in a union suit, too lost in a haze of pot and monster-truck rallies to pay heed to the nude preening of his wife Sharla (Gershon) or the troubles of his hapless son Chris (Emile Hirsch). His daughter, 20-year-old babydoll/Carroll Bakeresque, Dottie (Juno Temple, of Sin City fame and daughter of filmmaker, Julien Temple), is prone to sleepwalking out of her bedroom safe haven of snowglobes and stuffed animals to coo (occasionally lucid) non sequiturs. Chris and Dottie’s mother has been dipping into Chris’s coke stash, the sale of which was to pay off a debt to a local kingpin.So it is decided, with minimal philosophical or logistical debate, that the conspicuously off-screen matriarch must die. A $50,000 life insurance policy can cover the cost of hiring the eponymous cop (Matthew McConaughey), who moonlights as a courteous hit man. The remainder is hardly starting-over money, not that any of these folks has a concrete plan beyond living a bit better than before. There is no on-screen rumination or reflection in this amoral vacuum, just savage emotions and primal call-and-response. These people aren’t too stupid to live, just too stupid to succeed.Dottie is the virginal sacrifice (very explicit) in lieu of an advance for Killer Joe’s services. When Joe looks at Dottie, Friedkin backlights her unbrushed hair into a halo of hope amidst the crossfire of betrayals and bad ideas. McConaughey has taken notes from Robert Mitchum’s Night of the Hunter: avoiding a fullblown cowboy-hat-and-sunglasses camp cartoon. Joe is both sadistic monster and angel of vengeance, greedy predator and tender lover. He is, perhaps, the hero of this sordid tale. Friedkin and Letts possess a bold oldschool faith in familiar pulp tropes and down-and-dirty dialogue, re-creating the sort of electric clash between hyperrealism and hallucination, horror and farce, rarely seen since the best B-movie of yesteryear. Such deep-fried depravity used to be a guaranteed seat-filler for a certain kind of audience: Drive-ins and grindhouse, but these days, slapped with an NC-17, it seems downright avant-garde. Killer Joe closes with the disco-blues sermon “Strokin’” as Clarence Carter leads listeners in an ecstatic release of raw, rural libidinal energy. It is the perfect punctuation to this exuberant white-trash Gothic. Friedkin and Letts are similarly unapologetic about their noboundaries ride on the raging blue-collar id, and unafraid to play it for both laughs and genuine feeling.The Blu-ray presentation comes with a sharp 1080p transfer and DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio track. both not ground-breaking but very clear and sharp. Since this film was released NC-17 in theaters, the film arrives on Blu-ray in this Unrated Director’s Cut. There is also an R-rated DVD included - for those who need it. The Unrated Director’s Cut features an excellent commentary track from director William Friedkin, highly recommended - he's got The gift of the gab.The rest of the special features are decent but not spectacular. There is a featurette called “Southern Fried Hospitality: From Stage to Screen”, takes us through from the beginning. Besides that there is some footage from SXSW including a Q&A with Cast and an intro by William Friedkin. Also features a "white trash" Red Band trailer. Great English subtitles, too.

A good movie

This will not be some people's cup of tea. And those people should know that and simply move on instead of crapping all over the movie.If you are into these movies. Grindhouse-ish, almost like a young edgy Quentin Tarantino type movie, than you will like it. It IS shot well. The Actors ALL did an excellent job. The music was fine and never distracted from the scenes.My only gripe was the ending moments. (SPOILER) I actually like the type of ending where you can let your imagination go one way or another. But the way that it was shot makes it look like she was going to pull the trigger. I so, just film it. Still enough wiggle room to think maybe not. But it appear to be a solid 65/35 chance she popped him in the dome lol.My advice. Within 20 minutes or so you will know if this is your type of movie. If not, then just move on.There is NO sane universe where this film deserves a 1 or 2 star rating. Trust me. Ignore those people.

Killer Joe is about murder and betrayal. Emile Hirsch wants to kill his mother with the help of a corrupt cop played by Matthew McConaughey. It turns out everyone wants the insurance money that will come afterward leading to people to plot against each other. McConaughey is great as usual. He’s got the cool delivery, is cold blooded and perverted. I especially liked the ending which was unexpected.

This will blow an innocent moral idea of Matthew McConaughey. He is almost too good as the ruthless killer for hire corrupt sheriff. The acting is excellent which makes this movie palpable. Violence to the extreme and a creative use for a KFC chicken leg are not soon forgotten. To pull this movie off at all required a talented flexible cast which this movie has. Watch with chinese takeout!

William Friedkin's `Killer Joe' is one of the most shocking, vile, disgusting, sick and twisted piece of white-trash film noir that I have ever seen. I think it's also one of the best films of the year.The film revolves around 21 year old Chris Smith (played with hyperactive intensity by Emile Hirsch) who attempts to clear himself of a mountain of debt by hiring a hit-man to kill his estranged mother, in order to collect $50,000 of insurance money. With a gang of loan sharks threatening to take his life, time is an issue. Chris runs the idea by his father, Ansel, at the local strip joint, and while the dim-witted Ansel is hesitant at first, he ultimately agrees that it would be a great idea. The next day, Chris hires "Killer" Joe Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) to do the job for him. Joe is an detective by day, as well as a hit man on the side. He asks for an advance payment of $25,000, but Chris is unable to pay. As a result, Joe takes Chris' twenty year old sister, Dottie, as a "retainer" until he receives his money. Ansel's wife Sharla (Gina Gershon) is hesitant at first, as she doesn't trust Chris because of his tendency to be unreliable; however, she plays along regardless.In the meantime, Joe and Dottie enter into a sexual relationship and become quite fond of one another. This agitates Chris to no end, and before the credits roll, everything goes straight to hell in a blood-soaked, much talked about finale.Make no mistake - this film earns the NC-17 rating and then some. It is not for the faint of heart or the easily offended. The notorious "chicken leg" scene is just as abhorrent and disturbing as you've probably heard, and is the sole reason for the NC-17 rating. William Friedkin is on top of his game here and pulls no punches. The sordid lives of these disgusting characters are graphically brought to the screen, written for the screen by Tracey Letts' in an adaptation of his stage play. This Southern-gothic noir is beautifully shot by Caleb Deschanel, and the score by Tyler Bates is appropriately twangy and unsettling.The performances are uniformly amazing. McConaughey is at the top of his game here. This is an Oscar worthy performance, unlike anything that the actor has every accomplished before. Gina Gershon is incredible in her role as the double-crossing Sharla. Juno Temple is in full-on Lolita-mode as Dottie, creating a complex character with many unpredictable quirks. Thomas Hayden Church plays against type as the stupid, southern-fried redneck, Ansel. Finally, Emile Hirsch is fantastic as Chris, delivering his best performance since his underrated contribution to `Milk'.`Killer Joe' is a fantastic film, but once again, it is only for the brave. The faint hearted and easily offended are advised to steer clear.`Killer Joe' is 1 hour and 45 minutes, rated NC-17 for "graphic disturbing content involving violence and sexuality, and a scene of brutality", released by Lionsgate. Available on Blu-ray and DVD.

Ok, forget what you know and what you see about Friedkin in the seventies: it's a peak he was not going to reach again in the following decades. Still this is a pulp, brilliant, dark comedy, very well written, with a bunch of good actors and Matthew mcconaughey best performance ever (that means the director just let him be himself, playing a role that is so like he probably is in life, including his accent, that was so exploited in True Detective).Friedkin has been smart enough to take the best of the brilliant theatrical piece the film is based on.All the rest is good pulp/crime comedy.

Not the director's finest effort. Begins with garish, inconsistent use of colour, ram-shackle editing and grotesque stereo-types then veers into something very like sinister sexploitation of an intellectually-challenged nubile woman. That kink not very surprising in the context of the director's 'preferences' but disappointing. B-Movie all the way.

This film is a real gem, its very original, wrong in so many ways but works due to its killer cast and clever story. If you want something original then this is a great addition, just know you may never look at KFC in the same way again.

sweaty, trash thriller with the alright alright alright guy.

In spite of the stellar cast, I was disappointed by the script, dark humour yes but not in this case...