Killer Joe - BLURAY

You will never look at chicken the same way again lol... Seriously though, this is a fantastic movie. A++

Killer Joe evokes the hardboiled regional poetry of Jim Thompson (pop. 1280, The Killer Inside Me) and William Faulkner (who supplies the poetic epigraph), flirts with outright exploitation, provides game actors with roles to relish, and finds the heart of darkness in a bucket of Fried Chicken. Their adaptation leaves the Tracy Lett's source play almost untouched. )Letts and Friedkin previously adapted Letts' play, Bug, with Ashley Judd and Michael Shannon.) A few choice locations open up the Dallas, Texas outskirts but the real meat and inevitable massacre still occur in the pressure-cooker confines of a family trailer home. Cinematographer Caleb Deschanel (Being There, The Right Stuff) employs a grease-stained Edward Hopper vibe refracted by tawdry and cartoonish fluorescents, and the atmosphere is all noir jazz bassline, thunderstorms, blazing trash-can fires, restless pitbulls, and Gina Gershon’s casual crotchbearing. Letts convinced Friedkin to preserve this charming introductory detail in an eight-page memo bearing the advice “Don’t be afraid of the p****.” Meet the Smiths: paterfamilias Ansel, played by a hysterical Thomas Haden Church (Sideways), an oaf in a union suit, too lost in a haze of pot and monster-truck rallies to pay heed to the nude preening of his wife Sharla (Gershon) or the troubles of his hapless son Chris (Emile Hirsch). His daughter, 20-year-old babydoll/Carroll Bakeresque, Dottie (Juno Temple, of Sin City fame and daughter of filmmaker, Julien Temple), is prone to sleepwalking out of her bedroom safe haven of snowglobes and stuffed animals to coo (occasionally lucid) non sequiturs. Chris and Dottie’s mother has been dipping into Chris’s coke stash, the sale of which was to pay off a debt to a local kingpin. So it is decided, with minimal philosophical or logistical debate, that the conspicuously off-screen matriarch must die. A $50,000 life insurance policy can cover the cost of hiring the eponymous cop (Matthew McConaughey), who moonlights as a courteous hit man. The remainder is hardly starting-over money, not that any of these folks has a concrete plan beyond living a bit better than before. There is no on-screen rumination or reflection in this amoral vacuum, just savage emotions and primal call-and-response. These people aren’t too stupid to live, just too stupid to succeed. Dottie is the virginal sacrifice (very explicit) in lieu of an advance for Killer Joe’s services. When Joe looks at Dottie, Friedkin backlights her unbrushed hair into a halo of hope amidst the crossfire of betrayals and bad ideas. McConaughey has taken notes from Robert Mitchum’s Night of the Hunter: avoiding a fullblown cowboy-hat-and-sunglasses camp cartoon. Joe is both sadistic monster and angel of vengeance, greedy predator and tender lover. He is, perhaps, the hero of this sordid tale. Friedkin and Letts possess a bold oldschool faith in familiar pulp tropes and down-and-dirty dialogue, re-creating the sort of electric clash between hyperrealism and hallucination, horror and farce, rarely seen since the best B-movie of yesteryear. Such deep-fried depravity used to be a guaranteed seat-filler for a certain kind of audience: Drive -ins and grindhouse, but these days, slapped with an NC-17, it seems downright avant-garde. Killer Joe closes with the disco-blues sermon “Strokin’” as Clarence Carter leads listeners in an ecstatic release of raw, rural libidinal energy. It is the perfect punctuation to this exuberant white-trash Gothic. Friedkin and Letts are similarly unapologetic about their noboundaries ride on the raging blue-collar id, and unafraid to play it for both laughs and genuine feeling. The Blu-ray presentation comes with a sharp 1080p transfer and DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio track. both not ground-breaking but very clear and sharp. Since this film was released NC-17 in theaters, the film arrives on Blu-ray in this Unrated Director’s Cut. There is also an R-rated DVD included - for those who need it. The Unrated Director’s Cut features an excellent commentary track from director William Friedkin, highly recommended - he's got The gift of the gab.The rest of the special features are decent but not spectacular. There is a featurette called “Southern Fried Hospitality: From Stage to Screen”, takes us through from the beginning. Besides that there is some footage from SXSW including a Q&A with Cast and an intro by William Friedkin. Also features a "white trash" Red Band trailer. Great English subtitles, too.

REALLY good flick; but, i gotta say, not to the level i'd expected. I'd have given it 3.5 stars if i could have. With Matthew McConaughey (10 points); Emile Hirsch (10 points); Gina Gershon (8 points); Juno Temple (7 points); and William Friedkin directing (35 points); plus, prolly a 30 point script...i'd expect a 100 point movie, at LEAST. It falls short, and i'm not exactly sure why. You bring those elements together, you should be sittin' down for a 142 point film. The extra 42 points being the 'magic' of this stew. I feel that in films, the sum should ALWAYS greater than the sum of its parts; but, here it's about equal, roughly. It's lacking in a depth, and/or breadth that i expect from Friedkin. It feels like one of those movies that's fallen victim to that modern of afflictions: trying to tell a 2.75 hour story in 1.75 hours. The HD actually does it no favors; and, in fact may well have benefited from a less pristinely lit, more grainy approach. Something to give it more gravitas. Something to make it feel gut-wrenchingly real...something A LA 'Devil's Rejects', or 'Gummo'. The actors delivery, and the writing itself, is too 'pristine'; too 'clean' and sterile for a story so (potentially) vile, and 'dirty' on so many levels. Ditto the sets and costumes, too, if you ask me...or, well, in my opinion. Still a great watch, and would make the purchase, again, even with hindsight...or, foresight, or whatever. I'd prefer to have had the option of renting it. I think for a lot of people, waiting 'til you can rent it, is prolly a swell idea...unless you're a big fan of Friedkin, the cast; or, collect movies. Certainly worth watching; but, whether or not it's the kind of movie that'd warrant a 2nd, 3rd, or 4th+ watch...i dunno. P.S.-That point system is just, pretty much, made up just as an example. The points aren't reflective of any measurable distinction, are more variables than actual/perceived quantitative worth. Werd. P.P.S.-They stole my patented fried-chicken move!!

William Friedkin's `Killer Joe' is one of the most shocking, vile, disgusting, sick and twisted piece of white-trash film noir that I have ever seen. I think it's also one of the best films of the year. The film revolves around 21 year old Chris Smith (played with hyperactive intensity by Emile Hirsch) who attempts to clear himself of a mountain of debt by hiring a hit-man to kill his estranged mother, in order to collect $50,000 of insurance money. With a gang of loan sharks threatening to take his life, time is an issue. Chris runs the idea by his father, Ansel, at the local strip joint, and while the dim-witted Ansel is hesitant at first, he ultimately agrees that it would be a great idea. The next day, Chris hires "Killer" Joe Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) to do the job for him. Joe is an detective by day, as well as a hit man on the side. He asks for an advance payment of $25,000, but Chris is unable to pay. As a result, Joe takes Chris' twenty year old sister, Dottie, as a "retainer" until he receives his money. Ansel's wife Sharla (Gina Gershon) is hesitant at first, as she doesn't trust Chris because of his tendency to be unreliable; however, she plays along regardless. In the meantime, Joe and Dottie enter into a sexual relationship and become quite fond of one another. This agitates Chris to no end, and before the credits roll, everything goes straight to hell in a blood-soaked, much talked about finale. Make no mistake - this film earns the NC-17 rating and then some. It is not for the faint of heart or the easily offended. The notorious "chicken leg" scene is just as abhorrent and disturbing as you've probably heard, and is the sole reason for the NC-17 rating. William Friedkin is on top of his game here and pulls no punches. The sordid lives of these disgusting characters are graphically brought to the screen, written for the screen by Tracey Letts' in an adaptation of his stage play. This Southern-gothic noir is beautifully shot by Caleb Deschanel, and the score by Tyler Bates is appropriately twangy and unsettling. The performances are uniformly amazing. McConaughey is at the top of his game here. This is an Oscar worthy performance, unlike anything that the actor has every accomplished before. Gina Gershon is incredible in her role as the double-crossing Sharla. Juno Temple is in full-on Lolita-mode as Dottie, creating a complex character with many unpredictable quirks. Thomas Hayden Church plays against type as the stupid, southern-fried redneck, Ansel. Finally, Emile Hirsch is fantastic as Chris, delivering his best performance since his underrated contribution to `Milk'. `Killer Joe' is a fantastic film, but once again, it is only for the brave. The faint hearted and easily offended are advised to steer clear. `Killer Joe' is 1 hour and 45 minutes, rated NC-17 for "graphic disturbing content involving violence and sexuality, and a scene of brutality", released by Lionsgate. Available on Blu-ray and DVD.

Extremely entertaining flick

Great movie

I saw "Killer Joe" in a small Off-Broadway theater where it worked beautifully - just the right combo of hilarious black humor and white trash sick violence, so I was very anxious to see how it translated onscreen. On film it's all up close and most of the humor is drained from it - there's no audience laughing to let you know what's funny - and what's left is the uneasy, sick horror of the whole situation. There are a few great scenes that make you squirm appropriately, like Joe's creepy seduction of the 21 year old virginal girl, but the violence is in your face, bloody, and unpleasant. The play's most notorious scene - Joe forcing a woman to fellate a drumstick - was hilariously awful and horrifying onstage, but in the movie it's almost unwatchable and ghastly. Well deserved NC-17 rating. All the acting is great, but William Friedkin has never been afraid to rub the audience's nose in it and here he almost goes too far.

Mathew McConaughey, is acting differently in this movie. I don't know Mathew in person but watched his few movies before & found him to have this ability to act in variable situations that for sure is related to his intuitive talent. In this one, Mathew looks mysterious, acting as a law enforcer who is also hitman as his hobby with a perverted sexual habit. He is introduced to a poor low class family who is seeking to collect insurance health coverage by abating client's ex wife. Mathew, is becoming an actual part of this family after making the client's daughter pregnant & harassing client wife & badly battering client son & finally getting by himself killed by the client's pregnant daughter. One who is believing that could be any type of insurance in this life, is actually seeking it for others benefit that could be a pivotal trigger for beneficiaries looking for a way to collect it.

Película de género sin concesiones. Increíble que no se estrenara en salas comerciales ,que demuestra que William Friedkin sigue siendo un gran director. Reparto es estado de gracia. Recomendada para los amantes del buen cine y en especial de las pequeñas joyas perdidas.

Piccolo spacciatore texano, Chris Smith è indebitato fino al collo col temibile fornitore Digger Soames. Accortosi che la madre con la quale abita e con cui litiga continuamente gli trafuga delle dosi di cocaina, Chris si reca dal padre Ansel proponendogli di accopparla per intascare il premio della sua assicurazione sulla vita: oltre a saldare il debito, i soldi della polizza serviranno a garantire il futuro della sorella minore Dottie che vive insieme ad Ansel e alla sua attuale compagna Sharla. Esecutore designato per l’eliminazione è Joe Cooper, detective del dipartimento di polizia di Dallas che arrotonda lo stipendio con prestazioni da killer e che, messi gli occhi sulla virginale Dottie, la esige come caparra nell’eventualità che qualcosa vada storto.

邦題“キラースナイパー”日本ではソフト発売の予定はなく、今のところレンタルだけなんですねぇ。何でそんな扱いなんでしょう、勿体ない。まぁ確かに買ってしまうと怒って暴れだす人の方が多そうなお下劣感たっぷりな映画なんですが・・。マシュー・マコノヒーつながりで言えば、あの強烈で衝撃的だった“ペーパーボーイ”すら文芸映画に思えてしまう程に完全なる低俗映画！Ｗ・フリードキン監督はある意味、70年代の全盛期を凌駕する勢いで突っ走っているのかも知れません。レンタル版はモザイクも結構入っていたと聞きましたので、ゲス映画好きな方はここは思い切ってこちらのブルーレイを堪能することをお勧めします。台詞が強烈な映画でもあるのですが、もう出てくる人間が腹黒いバカか腹黒い変態のみという潔い映画ですから、知的で高尚な言葉なんてまったく出てきませんので、英語が堪能でもない私でもあまりにもの強烈さにクラクラしました。とにかく己の利益のためには平気で人を殺したり、少女をモノあつかいしたり、激しい暴力をふるったりする奴らが時には素っ裸で我儘放題するだけの話ですが、そのオチの付け方のブラック度も強烈。そしてあの陵辱シーンの悲惨さとバカバカしたと言ったら・・・。ケンタッキーフライドチキンに行くたびにこの映画を思い出してしまう事必至。トラウマ映画決定版と言えましょう。

I really liked this movie. I love Matthew McConaughey. He was great in this role. Every actor played a great role. Really worth watching.

When will movies stop showing violence against women and children! This is definitely NOT entertaining!