Review of Killer Joe (2012) by John M — 12 Jan 2013

The most uncomfortable I have ever been in a movie theater, bar none. This is the story of a crime that goes from bad to worse to nightmare when a young man (Emile Hirsch) hires a contract killer/detective (Matthew McConaughey) to kill his mother for the insurance policy.

When I watched the trailer for this, I immediately got excited because I picked up on some vibes that reminded me of No Country for Old Men and Blood Simple, with the latter being the most similar to the actual movie, only much darker.

This is very adult material, and I am almost surprised that this got a theatrical release, as it is rated NC-17. It focuses on the lowest class people out there in trailer trash criminals, and I have to reiterate that it ends up being dark as hell, but not without its moments of pitch black humor.

This is a movie that made me squirm like no other; there is one scene in here that was one of the most awkward sexual scenes I had ever seen since The Piano Teacher, and once I got past that, there is another one towards the end that is twice as uncomfortable than the first one! This is not a bad criticism, however, because I love a movie that can get that reaction out of me (I'm a big Alexander Payne fan).

I was on edge the whole movie for one reason or another, and the finale ratchets up the tension so high that I ended up watching it through my fingers because I had my hands over my face in horror. The standout performance here is from Matthew McConaughey, who is having one hell of a year.

He commands every situation with a dominating performance, and whenever you are watching him work, you cannot take your eyes off of him. I definitely wouldn't recommend this to everybody, but if you like your movies to get a strong reaction out of you, then this is a must see.