‘Killer Joe’ written by the brilliant, Pulitzer Prize winning playwright, Tracy Letts (based on his play) and directed by the 70+ year old, William Friedkin (Exorcist) blew me away for many reasons…But the main one is…
Matthew McConaughey’s extraordinary Oscar worthy performance as cop/hitman, Killer Joe Cooper. Never has McConaughey been better or more terrifying.
The film is a black comedy…violent, sexual, raw, thrilling and yes…funny in a very dark twisted, sort of way.
The story revolves around a trailer trash dysfunctional family and the killer they hire, to knock off someone, that is definitely NOT near and dear to them.
Sharla Smith (Gina Gershon) a woman who enjoys parading her naked body around her stepson, Chris (Emile Hirsch) shares a trailer with her loser hubby, Ansel (Thomas Haden Church) and his daughter, Dottie (Juno Temple)
Chris borrowed a large sum of money from a group of nasty men and now, they want it back. Trouble is, Chris is broke and can’t pay them. But the dude has a plan…Kill his mother (Ansel’s ex-wife) and collect the insurance money.
Daddy Ansel thinks it’s a super idea and he’s more than willing to help his son execute the plan. Now that’s a good father.
Unfortunately, as creepy as our guys are, murder is not exactly their thing. So they hire a cop/hitman, Killer Joe Cooper to do the job for them.
Problem solved, right? Not quite. Killer Joe won’t do the hit unless he’s paid his fee of $10,000 upfront. Looks like the boys are back to square one and Chris’s days are numbered.
But miracles do happen, even for a low life like Chris. Seems Joe has taken a fancy to kid sister Dottie and he agrees to forgo his $10,000 fee for…one dinner date with the lovely girl. Chris says…no way, but Miss Dottie agrees.
Dinner starts out perfect, but then…well I don’t want to spoil the fun by giving anything a way. But I will tell you that what happens in ‘Killer Joe’ is definitely jaw dropping shocking, making this movie, one you’ll remember for a very long time.
This is also one of director William Friedkin’s best films in years…Which just goes to prove the saying…’some things do get better with age’.
John and I both gave ‘Killer Joe’ which opens in theatres Friday July 27, 2010 4 1/2 bagles out of 5….John’s biggest bagel score in a really long time.
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