They Will Kill You
A delightfully pulpy action/horror/comedy that revels in its B-movie excesses, with a top-notch cast that are clearly having fun with the heightened material.
Premise: After being released from prison, desperate ex-con Asia Reaves (Zazie Beetz) takes a job as a housekeeper in The Virgil, an exclusive high-rise apartment block in New York City. But the wealthy residents of The Virgil are hiding a secret … as is Asia herself.
Review:
It’s perhaps a shame that They Will Kill You came out at almost the same time as Ready or Not 2: Here I Come, because they both have (superficially) similar concepts and they probably cannibalised their potential audiences (I know a few people who have confused these films for each other). The truth is, each has its own distinct voice and tone – although if (like me) you enjoyed the Ready or Not films, you’ll probably (like me) also thoroughly enjoy They Will Kill You.
They Will Kill You intentionally embraces a pulpy, B-movie tone in a far more wholehearted way than Ready of Not did (which kept its cards up its sleeve until the big reveal). In They Will Kill You (which, incidentally, is named after a mysterious warning written on a mirror in The Virgil), the movie has a heightened, stylised tone from the start, even before the reveal of what’s actually going on at The Virgil.
“…the action sequences are as inventive as they are violent…”
When the sh*t does hit the fan, the movie really pushes the envelope in terms of its blood and viscera – but in a cartoonish way that never feels grounded or realistic. Limbs are severed and blood fountains from torsos in a way that’s reminiscent of the over-the-top stylised action in Kill Bill – except the supernatural elements of this story means that the violence is even more detached from reality.
The action sequences are as inventive as they are violent, and all are run through with a strong vein of dark humour and absurdity. In this respect, They Will Kill You reminded me a little of (the excellent) Violent Night, in the sense that it showed me action sequences unlike anything I’d seen before, that made me laugh as much as they made me wince. Perhaps the highlight (visually speaking) is an action sequence that takes place in the dark where the only illumination is an unexpectedly flaming weapon – and I won’t spoil just how out-there (in a good way) the final act becomes.
“…a gleefully pulpy, action-packed horror comedy…”
Anchoring the whole film is Zazie Beetz’s central performance as Asia Reeves, and she fully embraces the heightened, pulpy tone, while also committing fully to the action sequences, and ensuring that the emotional centre of her character still rings true. The residents and staff of The Virgil are played by an unexpectedly eclectic collection of supporting actors, from veterans like Patricia Arquette, Heather Graham and Paterson Joseph to (relative) newcomers like Tom Felton and Myha'la – all of whom seem to be having a lot of fun with the material.
This is (by definition) the kind of film that isn’t even attempting to be mainstream entertainment – but as a gleefully pulpy, action-packed horror comedy, it surely deserves to become a cult classic.
