Review of Killing Them Softly (2012) by Rian Ó — 01 Feb 2015

Equal parts a darkly comic crime story and an outspoken allegory for the unjust capitalist society that America has become, Killing Them Softly is one of the most refreshingly cynical and politically indignant crime films since William Friedkin's "To Live and Die in L.

A.." While its message is incredibly unsubtle, constantly underlined by politicians talking on the radio or TV, and in the end may feel way too shallow, the film's deliberate hostility, heavy-handedness and unpleasantness make it an exhilirating experience.

But as much as the film is about the clear-cut societal ladder, it is also about the deglamorization of the crime mythology. None of the characters are menacing tough guys like Tony Montana or Jules Winnfield.

They are all sleazy and pathetic, unlucky and fearful. Instead of delivering grandiloquent monologues, their dialogue mostly revolves around drugs, hookers and their deplorable lives, and it is often unlistenably filthy ("She fucked like a fuckin' crazy alien", "I was drinking before you came out of your father's cock").

Neither does the film romanticize the brutality of violence, the use of drugs or the repugnance of its characters. Brad Pitt, James Gandolfini and the deliciously loathsome Ben Mendelsohn deliver solid performances, and Greig Fraser's cinematography brilliantly captures that sense of misery and poverty that is possessing the characters as well as their environment.

And at 90 minutes long, the film is extremely efficient and straightforward. But Killing Them Softly is still a polarizing film, regardless of your political position. Its deliberate pace, long dialogue scenes and overall sense of gloom will turn many viewers off.

It stares deep into the abyss of mankind, and no light is getting in to spoil the view.