Killer Joe

Didn't see a thread on this, but there's a Q&A with William Friedkin at 5 tomorrow in the lighthouse.

When 22 year-old drug dealer Chris (Hirsch) has his stash of drugs stolen from him by his mother, he has to come up with six-thousand dollars quick, or he's dead. Desperate, he goes to the trailer-park to see his father, Ansel (Hayden Church), and he lays out the plan. Chris's mother, who everyone hates, has a life insurance policy that would clear up his debt and make them all rich. The problem is that Chris' mother is very much alive. Enter Detective "Killer" Joe Cooper, a hired hit man with the manners of a Southern gentleman, who will do the job - for an upfront fee, that Chris and Ansel can't pay. Just as Joe is about to leave, he spots Dottie (Temple), Chris' innocent younger sister. Joe makes Chris an offer, he'll keep Dottie as sexual collateral until the money is collected and his fee can be paid.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxpvzmvFHTM

Looks pretty decent.

johnny_ultimate

Cheers for the heads-up on the Friedken Q&A.

I actually quite like the look of the film. I wouldn't be the biggest fan of the director, but the trailer is promising.

Skinfull

Also FYI there is a Cineworld Unlimited Exclusive screening of this on Tuesday to tie in with the Embra Film Fest.

Madame K

I've seen a stage production of Killer Joe. It was fantastic; I may have to see the film as well.

johnny_ultimate

I really enjoyed this. It's sleazy and exploitative as hell, but it's fully aware of it and plays up its inherent absurdity to giddily blackly comic effect. One of the funnier films I've seen recently. Full of deplorable characters doing ever more deplorable things, it's quite theatrical in its delivery (few actors, relatively minimal locations), which is to be expected given its stage origins. But Friedkin and his crew definitely embrace the seedy back water Texas setting. The film is always clearly building towards **** hitting the fan big style, and the final sequence certainly doesn't disappoint.

Gina Gershon being forced to perform oral sex on a piece of fried chicken while McConaughey 'orgasms' ecstatically is one of recent cinema's most bizarre but hilarious scenes.

Good performances all around, from McConaughey effectively playing against type, Haden Church's middle aged slacker, Juno Temple's slightly disturbing subversion of the 'manic pixie' archetype and Emile Hirsch's despicable desperation. It's not a masterpiece, but it's an appropriately absurd and dark evening's entertainment.

Friedkin was in great form too. His Q&A was the work of a man who has sat through such things hundreds of times, and I'd wager several of his stories are partially fictitious, but he seems like a genuinely approachable, enthusiastic and friendly guy. Well worth the voyage in to town.

delbertgrady

Yeah, I'd agree with all that. The ensemble cast of Killer Joe is excellent. McConaughey is deserving of all the praise he's getting, and the scene you tagged as a spoiler was bordering on David Lynch territory. Two people walked out about halfway through the film, but the vibe from the room suggested that the majority of people enjoyed it, if "enjoyed" is the right word. The moments of pitch-black comedy were superbly drawn, though I can imagine some viewers taking issue with some of the violence and I can also predict inevitable complaints about gratuitous nudity.

As for Friedkin's skill as a raconteur, never let the truth get in the way of a good story. Donald Clarke was rendered powerless from the outset. Friedkin's evident enjoyment of and enthusiasm for the occasion began with his insistence on remaining standing while addressing the room. He treated us all to what was a very enjoyable hybrid of a cinema masterclass and an exercise in standup comedy. I also liked the fact that the questions from the audience weren't all predictable French Connection or Exorcist-related, but were about his other, lesser known films. Easily one of the most enjoyable of those events I've been to, and great that he stopped off in Dublin on his way back from Edinburgh. Kudos to everyone involved in making this happen.

Corkfeen

I always tend to gain a bit of respect for mainstream actors that choose to take roles as risky as this. NC-17 seems to be a bit of a death notice for large scale cinema releases stateside, it could gain you acclaim or get your reputation destroyed depending and they're not gonna make a lot financially out of the role itself. Will definitely check it out as soon as it comes out.

delbertgrady

Rest assured, this is not a Matthew McConaughey/Kate Hudson picture.

johnny_ultimate

Such a difficult film to talk about without going into great detail about the sleazy brilliance of the finale :P

I do like that this film is probably going to be shown in the multiplexes due to McConaughey's presence. Bring on the walkouts!

JP Liz V1

Very cool poster

I can no longer comment on the poster having seen the film.

Can't wait for this to become a spoilers thread...


...:pac:

That_Guy

Off to see this in Cineworld this evening. Very much looking forward to it.

That_Guy

What an amazing film. Thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish. Still can't get that

oral sex with the piece of fried chicken scene out of my head. Absolutely mental and despite the sinister tone about it, the entire audience in the screening were in absolute stitches.

Very enjoyable and absolutely hilarious in places. Definitely one to watch.

Sad Professor

Major return to form for Friedkin! I'd rate this amongst his best films. McConaughey is a fantastic bit of casting. The third act is truly unforgettable. One of the most cynically depraved and unhinged conclusions I've seen in years. I loved every second of it!

the purple tin

McConaughey is a good actor when he gets the right film.
Hope he quits the boring rom-coms for some more diverse roles like this.

the purple tin

the purple tin wrote: »

McConaughey is a good actor when he gets the right film.
Hope he quits the boring rom-coms for some more diverse roles like this.

It's not so much a case of him getting the right film as McConaughey needing to take a risk every now and again. I've always found him to be an interesting actor who took the easy road of making quick cash from trashy, low brow cookie cutter fare. After the Lincoln Lawyer and now this it appears that he's at least trying to act once again rather than simply cash a quick check.

mike65

Friedkin says he'd love to do a Bond picture, I'd love him to do a Bond picture!

And one suspects some truth in this quote!

weiland79

the purple tin wrote: »

McConaughey is a good actor when he gets the right film.
Hope he quits the boring rom-coms for some more diverse roles like this.

He's the type of actor that i normally can't stand, but for some reason he can be very likeable.

duckysauce

Saw this today . Thought it was very good and some great one liners. McConaughey was excellent . Reckon KFC will sue the producers for lost revenue .

adamski8

i really liked it, for once i wasnt bored at any part of a film.
i wonder would it have been better without so much of the humour. like one of the near final scenes, i was hoping for a lot of tension that seemed to be coming but the humour kind of ruined that.

Lambasted

Checked entertainment.ie and seems this is only released in Dublin cinemas. Anyone know if or when this goes on full release or if it'll be shown in Galway??

Lambasted

Lambasted wrote: »

Checked entertainment.ie and seems this is only released in Dublin cinemas. Anyone know if or when this goes on full release or if it'll be shown in Galway??

Give it a few weeks, I imagine that there's only a couple of prints in Ireland and as such the rest of us are going to have to wait awhile to see it.

Andre80Johnson

There's something that's been bothering me the last few days about a particular scene at the end that I need help with.

Spoiler just in case others have yet to see it.

Chris and Joe are fighting, and then Dottie is there with a gun. She shoots and Chris gets shot. He falls to the ground and there's no movement. Then Dottie announces she is pregnant. So the bit that that's bothering me is, did Chris die because I noticed when he got shot, the blood splatter came from the shoulder region. I got the impression that he was unconscious but I'm unsure. So did he die or not?

Thanks.

johnny_ultimate

Andre80Johnson wrote: »

There's something that's been bothering me the last few days about a particular scene at the end that I need help with.

Spoiler just in case others have yet to see it.

Chris and Joe are fighting, and then Dottie is there with a gun. She shoots and Chris gets shot. He falls to the ground and there's no movement. Then Dottie announces she is pregnant. So the bit that that's bothering me is, did Chris die because I noticed when he got shot, the blood splatter came from the shoulder region. I got the impression that he was unconscious but I'm unsure. So did he die or not?

Thanks.

This might be interpreted as a cop out answer, but it's the only one I can give you: it doesn't really matter :pac: It's the chaos that matters, not necessarily the finer details. That the film cuts at the height of the insanity is a very fun punchline IMO. The loose ends didn't bother me, anyway.

John Mason

Seen this today - what can i say, we didnt speak to each other for 30 mins afterwards.

shocking, disturbing and brilliant at the same time.

I have a new found respect for McConaughey.

only 1 couple walked out.

e_e

Saw this in Screen 3 of the IFI last night. Had a blast and everybody else seemed to too. I can imagine it'd be really awkward with the wrong audience and I was glad that I wasn't the only one laughing at how deranged it is. Up there with the recent Cold Fish as a great depraved black comedy. It also has the most brilliant cut to end credits I've ever seen!

Faith+1

irishbird wrote: »

Seen this today - what can i say, we didnt speak to each other for 30 mins afterwards.

shocking, disturbing and brilliant at the same time.

I have a new found respect for McConaughey.

only 1 couple walked out.

Maybe they went to KFC??

frag420

Saw this last night. twas a first date......................thank fook she liked it. Laughed at the sick parts with me. Even joked about "that scene" near the end. Phew..............

I can almost forgive Mathew McConaughey for some of his recent pay cheque movie as he was unreal in Killer Joe. A great performance from Gine Gershon too!!

Def worth the overpriced tickets in Liffey Valley!!

Only after watching this, missed it in the cinema and really wish I could have seen it with an audience just to gauge the reaction. It's a truly wonderful piece of cinema, one of the most unhinged, depraved, sleazy and darkly comedic things I have ever seen. And certainly one of the high points in the career of everyone involved.

It's refreshing to see such deplorable and down right unlikeable characters as the centerpiece of a film. Not one character, bar perhaps Dottie has a single redeemable feature and by the time that final scene unfolds you can't help but feel no smypathy for any of them as they get swept up in the chaos. A lot has been said of the K fried C scene and it really is nowhere near as graphic or out there as I imagined it was going to be and I never imagined that I'd laugh as long and as hard as I did during it. It really is one of the most inspired moments in cinema history.

Killer Joe and Bug which is also based on a play by Tracy Letts have really reinvigorated Friedkin whop has spent the past few decades making some terrible films and only really getting jobs because of his wife. I imagine the the Friedkin of old would have indulged the more lurid elements of both films and tried to make them more cinematic where as these two films embrace the theatrical feel, small cast and few cramped locations to create something truly special. Really hope that Friedkin continues to choose material as risks as this as I think there's another classic or two left in him.

Not sure if it applies to the DVD released over here but the US DVD is an R rated cut version with only the Blu-Ray having the NC-17 cut. Really is a shame that the film was unable to reach the audience it deserved as while adult in nature there is nothing in the film that really deserves the NC-17 rating. The US really needs to bring in a rating that is somewhat less restrictive. I do wonder how many women dragged boyfriends to see Killer Joe simply because of the star expecting some bright and breezy rom-com where a hitman falls in love with his intended target and hijinks ensue.

Dermighty

Thomas Haden Church was excellent in this!

This overtakes Lincoln Lawyer as my favourite McConnaughey movie, because Ryan Phillippe was so terrible in it! (he is terrible in everything!)

siblers

Watched it last night, thought it was awesome. Last 20 minutes or so was pretty insane. Thought McConaughey and Thomas Haden Church were great in it.

paddy kerins

Just finished watching it. Thought it was fantastic. Agree with everyone about the performances of McCounaghy and Haden Church, they were terrific and the last couple of minutes were utterly bizzarre, Jesus Christ

Faith+1

paddy kerins wrote: »

Just finished watching it. Thought it was fantastic. Agree with everyone about the performances of McCounaghy and Haden Church, they were terrific and the last couple of minutes were utterly bizzarre, Jesus Christ

I walked past KFC today in the Jervis Centre and thought of this movie!:eek:

paddy kerins

Faith+1 wrote: »

I walked past KFC today in the Jervis Centre and thought of this movie!:eek:

I'll never look at a piece of leg the same way again

Dermighty

I love off the wall stuff like the end scene.