Killer Joe

[OrHowILearnedTo]

This is movie of the year for me so far. What starts out as what appears to be a pulp novel crime movie turns into this absolutely bizarre slice of (depraved) life. It's so grippingly tense and hilarious throughout, most of the time I wasn't sure if I was laughing because it was funny or I just needed to do something to break the tension, which is a sign that a dark comedy is really working. All the performances are so wonderfully demented and weird. They're just this side of caricature, but the actors are so committed that it really works. McConaughey is actually pretty great, and Thomas Haden Church just steals it. The third act is so intense, like 3 episodes of breaking bad intense packed into a half hour. It just escalates so quickly that you're just kinda forced to lose yourself to it.

Visually, Friedkin shoots it pretty economically, which is to say it doesn't really feature a ton of visual flourishes. Sometimes it falls into that "watching a play" type of feeling (it was based on a play by Tracey Letts). Pretty standard coverage throughout, and many scenes play out in mediums or wides. It's lit fairly bright, and with pretty deep focus which helps you see how gritty the environments are for the characters.

I haven't linked up a trailer cause I didn't see it going in and I think that added to my enjoyment. But don't underestimate how weird this movie is.

The final shot is perfect.

[squints]

I just saw this and really liked it. It was definitely an experience. Reminded me a lot of Friedkin and Letts' "Bug" but with a lot of humor. The theater was surprisingly packed and it got a range of reactions, lots of laugh out loud moments and a lot of gasps. I don't particularly understand the NC-17 rating as the violence, while pretty prevalent, wasn't anything too over the top. I'm guessing it was all the nudity.

I'll just say the chicken wing blowjob scene was pretty memorable. 

[Ghostboy]

I thought it was great. The ending was bugnuts, as they say, and as such was refreshing.

[samsong]

juno temple is so good in this.  the kfc scene is one of the craziest things i've seen in a while.  really good movie.

[Neil]

what a trip.  In the hands of the wrong person, this film could've been as bad as something like, "savages," but Friedken and Co. do it right.

[Mel]

What a gem. This movie is so bold, doesn't hold back for a minute. Great refresh from typical safe playing, easly my favourite of the year, if not few past years.

NC-17 is testimony how good this movie is. KFC scene is both explicit violence and sex, without showing nudity or guts at all. I'm not surprised it freaked out people behind parental guidance. Even that, I wouldn't have a problem with showing Killer Joe to my parents. It is disturbing thanks to great roles, writing and directing and not gimmicks known from slashers. This is also reason why smiling comes easy, when watching this.

Shame it didn't find larger audience at release. Hopefully this film will be rediscovered after some time.

[AntiDumbFrogQuestion]

I recommended this to my friend and he asked "who directed it?"
Honestly had no idea it was Friedkin. It was simply the performances and intensity and anarchy of the film that made it memorable. Bound to be a cult classic, in my opinion.
Most have been impressed by McConaughey's breaking out of his vanilla romcom box as of lately, and this is a testament to that, although I think the film stands on it's own merits.
Who else wanted to take a shower after watching this flick?