Review: Kill List (Brad’s Take)

British-Movie-Kill-List-Image-e1299032624282

September 3, 2011 By Bradley Porter In New Releases

There will be spoilers in this review. That’s not to say everything will be given away, any spoilers will be minor but when you’re told (for better or for worse) that Kill List is a film that needs to be seen cold it’s for a reason. So don’t read this review if you haven’t already seen the film.

There’s no such thing as a sophomore slump. It’s a myth perpetuated by so many filmmakers striking lightning first time out, normally with an idea they’ve honed and perfected for many years, and then shitting the bed. It’s not a curse, it’s just those that aren’t great filmmakers can’t repeat the success. So while there’s no such thing as a sophomore slump, there is definitely such a thing as a fluke.

With Kill List, writer/director Ben Wheatley proves he’s here for the long haul even if the film isn’t an unmitigated success. Wheatley carries over the style from his prior feature Down Terrace and takes it bigger. It’s a maturation of filmmaking prowess that shows he’s growing as a filmmaker and defining himself as an auteur. Where Down Terrace felt like The Royale Family meets The Sopranos, it’s follow up is a different beast entirely while unmistakeably part of the same oeuvre.

Kill List tells the tale of Jay (Neil Maskell), a former military man back from a mysterious job in Kiev who occasionally takes on wet-work as a means to provide for his family. Although his relationship with his wife Shel (MyAnna Buring) – who it must be said has secrets of her own – is tempestuous there’s no doubt they’re very much in love. While the work may have got the better of him, Jay’s convinced into doing one last job with best friend Gal (Down Terrace’s Michael Smiley). The details of this job: to kill three people on a list, no questions asked.

Most talk of Kill List has been reserved for those talking about the ending they can’t spoil but how it will terrify pretty much everyone. So putting that aside for the moment, how does the rest of the film stack up? As in Down Terrace Wheatley works alongside his actors in crafting a naturalistic screenplay, one which for all its ventures into surrealism feels as natural as if you were spying through the window of your dysfunctional neighbour. That there’s more tension in an early dinner table argument than the final twenty minutes is proof enough that the improvisational aspects of the films script work wonders. These actors/writers find the humour and humanity in characters that in any other film would be completely despicable. If nothing else, this ensemble deserve every award under the sun.

Make no mistakes Kill List is a very funny film in parts. The chemistry between Maskell and Smiley is so incredibly measured, so innate that it’s impossible not to root for them and their friendship. NO matter what horrors face them, both at home and in the wild they pull each other through, deserving to be one of the iconic British screen pairings, right up there with Withnail and the eponymous I. One scene where Jay & Gal come up against a group of singing Christians deserves mention in the same breath as that film’s infamous village cafe scene. It may be an odd comparison to make, but it’s strangely apt… a buddy movie of sorts, until the inevitable unhinged finale takes it somewhere else completely.

While a bad film can be redeemed by a great ending, one which lets you leave on a high… equally a great film can be completely dismantled by an ending that just shits the bed. It’s what can commonly be referred to as A.I. syndrome, or more recently Sunshine-fever. For as superb as everything that’s come before it is, the ending of Kill List is unsatisfying. Taken on it’s own terms, it’s every bit as terrifying as the marketing and hype would suggest, but as a finale for this film it’s disconnected. Wheatley said the ending was inspired by a recurring dream he had as a child, and that’s entirely believable. As such it’s entirely conceivable that perhaps this nightmare was used as a way of ending a film he had no clue on how to end.

There are terrifying moments in the film; one in particular is Jay’s reaction to a video of which we never see what he’s seeing. What that video provokes in Jay and the actions is compels him to do are more terrifying than anything seen in the conclusion. Also, that “wave” is creepy as fuck…

The concept of the “Kill List” is a fantastic MacGuffin to hang a narrative on, yet the film has no desire to draw any connection between it and it’s lightly telegraphed finale.* Ambiguity should always be championed, and when it’s successful it’s because the film gives the audience enough pieces that they can draw a conclusion on their own, and whether or not it’s correct is inconsequential; those pieces still need to have a personal sense of understanding. Mulholland Drive has it; Donnie Darko (not the Director’s Cut) has it. Kill List feels like an assembly of ideas which taken individually play like gangbusters, but have been put together with such little consideration for the bigger picture that it inevitable feels less than the sum of its parts. Yes, there’s the moment with the bathroom mirror and the bit where Jay sees something from his hotel window, but these are few and far between.

When the final act comes (and the pieces you’ve been waiting to fall into place never do), the tension is palpable and the events that unfold are horrific. Wheatley definitely has an understanding of horror filmmaking that surpasses many of his peers, but it’s entirely possible the ending isn’t as shocking as you’ve probably been led to believe. If you see the poster for Kill List and think you have an idea as to how the film ends, I can assure you you’re instinct it probably right. When the kicker comes it’s a kick in the teeth, yet is eerily similar to two other high profile genre releases in the last year (which I won’t reveal here for danger of being TOO spoiler-riffic).

So for all the things Ben Wheatley does right in Kill List of which there are many, there’s that feeling you get walking out of the cinema that there should have been something more render it a film to recommend. Outside of feeling like you’ve been kicked in the face, once it’s had time to settle you have to wonder… well what does it all mean? And I’m not sure the film knows the answer. What you get with Kill List is an excellent 70 minute Mike Leigh Genre film and a 20 minute, bone-chilling short film for the price of one. It’ll be considered a cult classic regardless, but I have to wonder if it’s been so long since we had a great British genre film that there may be a straw or two to be clutched.

*SPOILER

If the KILL LIST of the title is so important, what does Jay killing the men on this list have to do with the events of the finale? Obviously there’s something there, and these men thank him for giving them the opportunity to be killed by him but WHO do they think he is? WHY does he have to kill these guys before the cult can take him in? Please someone give me an answer than makes sense other than “it builds character…”…

Monte Carlo

My take: SPOILERS DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU’VE SEEN IT

I saw it last night. Been thinking about it since. I reckon Jay is a sort of ‘chosen one’ for the cult, which seems to me to be predicated on the worship of murder (i.e. the hangings). The victims on the ‘kill list’ are willing sacrificial lambs, offering themselves up as part of a wider ritualistic strategy to make Jay complete (in their own fucked-up way). The killing in the end is some sort of necessary crowning act. The people arounnd Jay, including his wife, have been watching from the sidelines. I need to see it again, whereupon I’ll change my mind. Good review Bradley, although I found the ending to be OK (but yeah, I completely take your point that a tiny dab of exposition might have been more satisfying).

Rob Simpson

I agree entirely. When I left the cinema I felt short changed by what seems like universal critical acclaim, what was a good takashi miike meets mike leigh hitman thriller became THAT. I was really dissapointed, maybe even a little angry too.

David Mccarroll

Just watched it and is defo a cross between rosemary baby and the wicker man. Reading reviews before me I agree that he was some sort of anti Christ or demon and that they were As the employer put it reconstructing something. So I believe each of the people on the kill list was sacrificed to allow him to become king this meant his wife was in on it and calmly shot intruders as this was a reconstruction I think his mate was maybe even in on it as he thanked him right before he shot him that’s my tuppence worth.

Lol

Kill list seemed to have undertones of a soldier with ptsd. It seemed reality and dream state are murked with jay unable to determine which is which. I think a lot of the violent killing aspects where all in the mind of jay, trying to come to terms with a terrible tragedy in kiev. Undertones of his wife and friend worrying about his mental health. The way they try and warn him he is going to far with his behaviour is classic in the case of ptsd.
I have seen a lot of reviews about possible antichrist interpretation and to an extent I agree. With ptsd it is common to need a reason for what has happened no matter how ludicrous and fabricated it maybe. I think he slipped into a world where he felt if he could commit atrocities like in Kiev then he could very well be the antichrist and fabricated this story in his head of what he could do, what he was capable off to give his past a sense of purpose on what happens next. An ideal that you are working for a greater good. I think this is represent by the terms used “I kill bad people” I feel jay has become disillusion with why he went to war and is questioning whether what he done there was morally correct. The king Arthur symbolism throughout the film strikes me as a comparison of the Iraq war and the crusades.
The way a good moment can quickly change to that of anger is also common with PTSD. Remember the dinner how quick that turned. Even the playing happily sword fighting as a family quickly changed to jay off killing again. Emotions during a bout of PTSD are heighten which would explain why his reaction to situations was somewhat stronger to everyone elses.
So none of this explains the cult and the actual list. Well I feel the cult represents the army and to an extent the government its self. Manipulated to kill in order to protect what he holds dear (his family life) he has no skills except the ability to kill so needs to use these to provide for his family. The terms “cogs” and “reconstruct” are common army terms. This to me also suggest that he isn’t a so called chosen one. His marriage breakdown, his distance from his best friend and his anger issues are all common complaints from those with ptsd
The priest – The cult leads him to kill an innocent man of faith like many clerics in Iraq have been killed. Killing a man of god represents the military forcing him to cut his beliefs and morals

The librian – represents Iraqi soldiers. These are seen as lower levels of the enemy (evil) The fact he is only a keeper of the material and not a producer of it represents this

The MP – the fact the cult are mingled in with the last target I thin could be a way of mocking government. The fact you have gone there to kill a target but there surrounded by the very people you work for is similar to the way the Taliban now in talks for power in afghan or how a lot of saddams old regime are now back in government in the new Iraq
The hunchback – I think it shows the final breakdown in his family life. How the army have manipulated jay to an extent that without even knowing it he is subconsciously destroying his family.
Misc Characters – I think people that saw what he regarded as the weaker side of himself (mental health) were inserted into the dream. This allowed the dream to be more real and allowed him to show them he wasn’t weak.

The happiness and the thank yous by the victims represent that jay feels that part of his jjob is done and that people should be grateful of the sacrifices and the work he has done. It also shows that they my suffer but there is a greater plan and that the suffering of a few for the good of the any is a fair trade

Rob Simpson

I agree entirely. When I left the cinema I felt short changed by what seems like universal critical acclaim, what was a good takashi miike meets mike leigh hitman thriller became THAT. I was really dissapointed, maybe even a little angry too.
Ben Sheppard88

“…including his wife, have been watching from the sidelines.”

See, this is where I get confused. If every part of “the Hunchback” segment is literal (i.e. his wife has been in on it), then why is she shooting the home invaders? Why would anyone approach the house for the child, when the wife is in on it?

http://twitter.com/ickabelgont David Brighton

I went to see this a couple of days after @marieh0151, having avoided all spoilers. I thought it was excellent up until the titles rolled, then left feeling slightly robbed of the final reel (explanation/valediction/closure, take your pick). A couple of hours & some discussion later, though, I think too much explanation would rob it of it’s punch, and stop us thinking, talking and remembering it. For the record, here’s my/our thoughts on your last question
(SPOILERS)
Not ‘character building’ but more a test of character. Gal still has moral scruples (killing the priest, Jay’s general attitude & levels of violence) and is therefore unsuitable for the role of ‘king’. Jay, however, is driven further into insanity – presumably starting with Kiev, until he is ready to take the place prepared for him.
It definately requires another watch to see if this holds up, and if any other questions are actually answered without me noticing first time round. Is his wife part of the consiracy (laughing at the end) the main one for me. I was really bothered by not finding out what happened in Kiev, but on reflection it, like the video Jay watches, is probably more important in it’s consequences than explanation.
I’d say 2 stars coming out of the cinema (annoyed), 4 stars on reflection, and reserve the right to change my mind again. Definately a film that needs seeing, if only to show that film can still provoke thought rather than just numb the senses for a couple of hours
Bunny

+ + + CONTAINS SPOILERS + + +

I would ask people who enjoyed the film up until the end NOT to ask, ‘What did the end mean in relation the rest of the film,’ but ‘What did the rest of the film mean in light of the ending.’

The ending was brilliant. I was pretty confused and sometimes a bit bored, truth be told, all the way through until it was explained in the end and then I was, like, ‘OOOOH!’ *gets it* So, questions:

Why did Fiona carve the symbol on the back of Jay’s mirror and then, presumably, kill the rabbit in the garden (she had a bloody rag in her hand)?

What was with all the discussion about Christianity? At the dinner table and then in the hotel? Those people in the hotel could easily have been any other kind of annoying or obnoxious. It was significant they were Christians – and that Gal was too.

How come the Librarian knew who Jay was and why did he thank him for killing him?

Why was his Doctor replaced by someone else who, instead of looking at Jay’s hand, delivered a sinister, prophetic message.

These questions were all ANSWERED at the end. Jay was being lined up to be the anti-Christ – or something like it – and everyone on the Kill List knew who he was and waiting for Him (capital H) to come. Let’s not forget that, at the end, the members of the cult run TOWARDS Jay’s bullets, not away from them. They want to be taken by Him.

Throughout the film, Jay’s actions weren’t being controlled exactly – he was still free to make choices. But there was a bigger force at work and it was one that was guiding him to make choices that seemed, in the moment, righteous to Jay (and us).

And the genius – and it was genius – of the film was that the more terrible things Jay did and the worse he behaved the more we sympathised or, at least, understood. He’d been dehumanised, or desensitised at least, by war and then by empty consumerism (all that Jacuzzi business, the flash cars etc).

We were caught up with his plight… showing us how easy it is for him (us) to slip to the darkside. He seemed like he was doing the right thing: bringing up a family, fighting for his country and so on, then killing someone for pedalling snuff or paedo porn (it doesn’t matter which – the fact you imagine it something sickening is the important part).

But, through the machinations of the cult, let us not forget, he was shooting at the cult members and then ended up putting the final bullet in his best friend (even then, you might agree he still seemed to be doing the ‘right thing). And, finally, in the final scene, he thinks he’s just fighting for his life against the ‘baddies’… but in reality he’s destroying the ONE thing he really loves and cares about… He’s been tricked into getting to this point for sure – but so have we and we’ve gone along with it just as he did.

It’s brilliant.

I think one of the problems with this film for filmgoers is that no critics want to give away the end and so we all KNOW that something is going to happen at the end. And people are annoyed because they think it’s going to be a twist, but it’s actually sort of the opposite. It’s a satisfying revelation that answers all (or, in my mind, anyway – most) of the questions I’d been been asking all the way through.

mighty.emperor

This is pretty much my take on it, although I’d avoid “antichrist”, it could easily be that he is being initiated as some kind of cult enforcer or as a scapegoat (in the more specific use of the term).

“If the KILL LIST of the title is so important, what does Jay killing the men on this list have to do with the events of the finale?”

The kill list is what the cult uses to set him out on his path. This is a ritual re-enactment of some kind of unspecified initiation ceremony and has strong mythic overtones: killing a priest, a keeper of secrets and a leader (who are all cult members, so they not only recognise Jay but understand their important role in the ceremony and are grateful to sacrifice their life) before entering a tunnel from which he is reborn and has to perform a fourth killing not on the list, one which cuts his final ties with normal life. At which point he is crowned by the cultists.

So Jay is basically an actor in an ancient play that may have been played out hundreds of times over the century (or this might be the first, and last, time and it is playing out according to some legend they have) – it is the kill list that gets him to walk out onto the stage and it is the signing of the contract in blood at that point which pretty much seals his fate.

Bunny

P.S. I said:

“Everyone on the Kill List knew who he was and waiting for Him (capital H) to come. Let’s not forget that, at the end, the members of the cult run TOWARDS Jay’s bullets, not away from them. They want to be taken by Him.”

Just to qualify, I’m saying that everyone on the Kill List recognised that to be killed by Jay was part of the big plan to summon the Anti-Christ (or whatever, sorry, I’m not up to speed with that sort of thing). They were GLAD to be killed by him because, as it turned out brilliantly in the end, they were all part of the cult and they recognised they were being killed for the greater good… or, er… evil.
Horror Movie Genius

noone talks about the angle of how Fiona is brought into Jay’s House by Cal

Cal in several scenes can’t look at Jay in the eyes like he maybe is ashamed of what he’s done to his best friend.

He comes to his party with her as his gf , she marks Jay as a target of the cult. Next day she is gone according to Cal leaving him a dear john note. Look at the face of Cal when Jay asks where Fiona is plus all the dialogue about her later in the movie between Jay and Cal “she fucks like a demon” “there’s someone for everyone mate”

Cal also seems to be a little funny in the scenes with money and where they are on the job. He actively gets Jay into the job but then is passive while they are working. He lets Jay do all the killing and hard work really and then he’s the one holding onto the cash it’s all Jay doing the work.

The penultimate fight between Jay and Cal at the house before going to kill the MP is the key scene in the movie (imho) they essentially fight over Jay’s wife (who Cal clearly wants to be with and probably threw Jay to the cult to get rid of). In the middle of their murder spree Cal just decides he wants to make sure Jay knows he doesn’t take care of his wife…this is the major plot I’ve seen ignored by most reviewers. It seems to establish that Cal wants Jay’s wife and even then goes on to directly reference Fiona when he backs down from talking shit about Jays marriage “there’s someone for everyone mate!”

WHAM- MOVIE THOROUGHLY TAKEN APART
ThatGuy

Spoiler: One of two things, either they were trying to “reconstruct” their organization by hiring hit-men to kill off particular members so they can pick a new leader or (this is more likely) they manipulated events and tricked a man into sacrificing his own family so they can usher in the anti-christ. Im leaning toward the second choice because the evidence supports it, that deeper angle is persistent throughout the movie without actually saying it — they definitely wanted the viewer to think about this.

Right off the bat you realize that there is no god in Jay’s family, Gal wanted to say grace before dinner and Jay’s wife said “Not at my table”, this lets you know their beliefs, why is this important? It really means nothing at all unless you start looking at the anti-christ angle, it starts to fit. Jay is reluctant to go back to work, after whatever happened in Kiev his mind is definitely scarred but his wife insists he goes back. Though Jay is mentally unstable he has no choice but to kill for profit, this is who he is, a killer — whether Jay wants it or not. The selection: because of WHO and WHAT he is, I believe they picked him as the right candidate, he is evil personified. At the meet, he has his hand cut open and blood spilled, a contract is presented, blood from the employer himself is also placed on this contract. Later on in the movie you see signs of an infection on Jay’s torso, initially you assume it has to do with his cut, I think its evil beginning to completely take him over. The movie is genius in that respect, you can look at it on the surface or follow the deeper element as suggested by the director — the doctor who sees Jay doesn’t even look at his hand when he says “You’re fine..”, later we discover the doctor is also part of this cult. As the movie progresses you see Jay completely break down and lose it, he even enjoys it. At the motel they were staying in Jay comes out of the shower and stands at the window and notices Gal’s girlfriend standing in the breeze waving at him; perhaps she was excited about the new arrival and wanted to greet him, Jay waves back and looks perplexed but decides to just gloss it over, he makes no mention of it to Gal or his wife who we see in the very next scene who happens to be entertaining Gal’s girlfriend. Signs of possession perhaps? A takeover of Jay’s faculties, at this point Jay is becoming reborn. A sigil is placed behind the mirror, I would like to think its some kind of magic being used, in the very house of the target himself, as he looks into the mirror and back himself the sigil is hidden within that process, Im no practicing magician but it feels right to me. Also the black cat that was strung up and bound to mark the residence, the element of dark magic is alive throughout the movie and its undeniable, the intention is what the movie is really all about. The death of priest suggests the cult’s involvement is much larger than we can imagine. The Christian group singing during dinner, another scenario in which the director decides to show you what is going on, he didn’t have to put that there, it obviously means something.

In the end, “The Hunchback” — it was the cult’s intention to trick Jay into slaughtering his own family, the final sacrifice. They knew he was being taken over but to ensure the success of their ritual they didn’t want to take the chance of him not being able to carry it out, gave me chills because of how cunning they were. Once the deed is done you see him being crowned and everyone standing around and clapping, a few faces looking on with excitement in their eyes. I also noticed one final detail that really sold the Anti-Christ angle to me, the nude woman wearing the thorns. Satanists often tend to reverse things, inverted cross etc, meaning the “opposite” of the original. Jesus was a man, here we see a woman, the thorns are covering her eyes and she is bleeding from them, completely vulnerable and present throughout the ritual yet completely helpless, symbolic of the Anti-Christ’s imminent arrival.

As an American I have to say this movie is awesome, the directing was excellent and the acting was perfect, I wish more movies like this existed. I absolutely loved how they meshed the hitman angle with occult themes, really felt like anything could happen at any moment. Many of my friends couldn’t fully appreciate it and got angry because the ending made no sense to them lol, maybe knowing what the movie is about can help you like it more because this movie is deep. Once you understand the profound deepness of the content you will get chills that linger. In the words of the Priest, “Thank you…” lol!
ThatGuy

Oh yea, at the meet when Jay has his hand cut, his employer also cut his own hand and stamped it onto a piece of paper — the contract. Note that the ‘contract’ was blank, think of this as a blank check.

Gal’s g/f also took bloodied napkins from the bathroom as well.
Shane

I think this thread pretty much nails it except I am sure Shel was in the cult. He volunteers to military service, she buys the assault rifle, she rejects grace at dinner, she doesn’t seemed bothered about the rabbit etc. Everyone with the exception of Gal was in on the sole objective of fracturing Jay’s mind so he would lead/work for, the cult. I think Kiev was the first attempt which didn’t work but enough to stop him working for 8 months. They then know that his son was the only way to push him completely over the edge, his relationship with his wife was not strong enough to be ammunition of this size so they orchestrated the grime final scene, and Shel laughs.
In the cottage she is still in character so she kills people entering as she does’t know where Jay is.
Privat

I assumed people were grateful to be killed because they’d all done something terrible that they were finding it hard to live with. Probably tricked into killing somebody they loved as an initiation rite in the same way Jay was.