6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.9 |
Nearly a year after a botched job, a hitman takes a new assignment with the promise of a big payoff for three killings. What starts off as an easy task soon unravels in an unforeseen direction.
Starring: Neil Maskell, MyAnna Buring, Harry Simpson, Michael Smiley, Struan RodgerHorror | 100% |
Drama | 31% |
Thriller | 7% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
feat. 2 commentary tracks [ 1st with director Ben Wheatley and writer Amy Jump; 2nd with actors Neil Maskell, Myanna Buring & Michael Smiley ; DD2.0]
English SDH, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Few would contest that the mainstream horror genre has had a bit of an identity crisis over the past decade. First, there was the "let's remake or
reboot all the classics from the 1970s and early '80s" phase. Then we had the gross-out torture porn oneupmanship of Saw and
Hostel. And now, we're knee-deep in a glut of found-footage films, ever more derivative. There are exceptions, of course—Antichrist,
Cabin in the Woods, Splice—but to find smart, adult horror movies with more on the brain than just gore and T&A and cheap
scares, you generally have to venture outside the multiplex. And, quite often, outside the U.S.
English writer/director Ben Wheatley got his start making clever YouTube videos with seamless special effects—check out his cheekily named ”Cunning Stunt”—but his feature debut, Down Terrace, a hilarious and
troubling Mike Leigh-esque crime drama, proved he was born for more than just
10-second viral clips. For his second film, Kill List, he keeps the criminal element in play with a premise about two hit-men on a discrete
mission, but then insidiously introduces themes and imagery poached from Britain's "folk horror" cult classics of the '70s. This is a film that baffles and
unnerves, building mysteriously to a pagan freak-out of a conclusion that doesn't entirely make sense but is terrifying nonetheless.
Like just about every other small-budgeted indie film lately, Kill List was shot digitally using the Red One camera, and the footage transfers easily into a 1080p/AVC encode, in the correct 2.35:1 aspect ratio. I have no doubt that IFC's Blu-ray is faithful to source and intent; there's no edge enhancement here, DNR, or any other unnecessary alterations, and no glaring compression issues. The picture is clean and quite sharp throughout. From a normal viewing distance, noise is only visible in the darkest scenes—supposedly, the film was shot almost entirely with natural light—and the level of clarity is often striking. (See the finely reproduced nubbiness of Shel's terrycloth bathrobe, or the skin textures of the actors' faces in closeup.) There's occasionally some softness due to the tricky combo of imprecise focusing and shallow depth of field, but there's not much that can be done about that. Color-wise, the image is well-saturated and nicely graded, with a natural palette that's slightly stylized with punched up contrast and a creamy cast to the highlights. Black levels, skin tones, and shadow detail all look fine. An all-around strong high definition presentation.
Kill List's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track builds in intensity as the film goes on. The early, dialog-heavy domestic scenes feature a modicum of quiet household noise, the track-em-and-kill-em middle act adds in punches and hammer blows, and the finale explodes with unnerving screeches, bursts of gunfire, and creepy wet-subterranean-tunnel ambience. The rear channels are frequently used for effects and atmospherics, and mix is dynamically hardy, with clear highs and an undercurrent of throbbing, pulsing subwoofer output. What really makes the track is the unnerving orchestral/electronic score by TV composer Jim Williams, which amps up the dread and gives the film its tonal edge. My lone qualm is that the voices are occasionally a hair low in the mix, which can be a concern considering how thick some of the accents are. I didn't have too much trouble deciphering the dialogue, but if you need help, the disc does include optional English SDH and Spanish subtitles.
Kill List isn't without its frustrations—namely, the feeling that the lack of explanation is actually masking the lack of a real story—but it's still the most enigmatic horror film I've seen this year. I'm looking forward to watching it again to see if it's possible to pick up on additional clues and fill the holes in the plot. We'll see. Those interested in cryptic genre films, dark rituals, and British folk horror should definitely check it out, and the best way to do so is IFC's Blu-ray release, which offers strong picture quality, a spooky audio track, and two worthwhile commentary tracks. Recommended.
2011
2007
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2009
Warner Archive Collection
1962
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2019
2015
1991
Unrated Edition
2005
Unrated Edition
2006
2017
2013
1990
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מי מפחד מהזאב הרע / Mi mefakhed mehaze'ev hara
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1945