When Stanley Kubrick was working on the script for the 1976 film version of Jim Thompson's novel The Killer Inside Me he said it was probably the most chilling and believable first-person story of a
criminally warped mind he had ever encountered.
The book by the 50's noir writer is on its second cinematic outing, this time in the hands of Brit director Michael Winterbottom and it is one of the most disturbing films I've seen.
*Potential plot spoilers* Set in a small town in west Texas, deputy sheriff Lou Ford (Casey Affleck) initially appears to be a pillar of the community and all-round good egg however there is more to Lou and it soon becomes apparent that it is all veneer.
He falls for prostitute Jocelyn (Jessica Alba) whom he's suppose to run out of town. Their first encounter is violent but spills over into the bedroom and becomes a passionate and mildly sado-masochistic relationship. Meanwhile he maintains a loving relationship with Amy, the town beauty played by Kate Hudson.
Lou wants revenge for his foster brother's death which he believes was at the hands of a powerful local businessman Chester Conway and plots, with Jocelyn, to blackmail his son Elmer.
But his sadistic leanings in the bedroom are just the beginning and he brutally beats Jocelyn to death all the time tenderly telling her he loves her and apologising. He then shoots Elmer and carefully covers his tracks by making it look like they killed each other.
Or so he thinks. As suspicion grows and the evidence doesn't quite stack up he chooses to mercilessly frame and murder his way out of the situation, all the time maintaining the coolest and calmest of exteriors.
The Killer Inside Me is going to divide audiences (and no doubt critics too). There will be those that argue against the violence as gratuitous and those like me who feel, while horribly disturbing, it is a necessary part of the story. Winterbottom doesn't glamourise the violence but shows the sickening brutality of it.
And I confess that I find the character of Lou both repugnant and fascinating. The film only gives away tantalising snippets of his past leaving lots of questions about how it shaped him - it is probably its only weakness.
It is great to see Jessica Alba and Kate Hudson away from the frothier films I tend to associate them with. And Casey Affleck is superb as the quiet duel-personality Lou, although his performance did remind me of some of his others and I wish he wouldn't mumble quite so much when he speaks.
The Killer In Me is a taut thriller, sickening and fascinating and I'm straight down to a book shop tomorrow lunch time.
So were the reviewers repulsed?
Well The Telegraph wasn't impressed giving it just two stars saying: "...this is, for long stretches, a listless, meandering film that’s not helped by Affleck’s deliberately introverted, almost opaque performance."
Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian gave it three stars and I enjoyed his opener: "It has been widely condemned for the scenes in which women are brutally assaulted and for many, this film will be just hardcore misogynist hate-porn with a fancy wrapper, and those who admire it, or tolerate it, are merely the women-haters' useful idiots. My own view is that this is a seriously intentioned movie, which addresses and confronts the question of male hate and male violence in the form of a nightmare."
And Empire Online gave it four stars concluding: "As darkly disturbing as Jim Thompson's novel, this is a genuinely upsetting film that might also be Winterbottom's best. Not for everyone, but near-faultless all the same."
Metacritic hasn't rated it yet - don't think it's gone on general release in the US yet but Rotten Tomatoes UK gives it 61%
Related post:
Michael Winterbottom talks the Killer Inside Me: Three interviews
I enjoyed your review. I'm a huge horror movie fan and you'd think I could watch this movie with no problems BUT this film seriously disturbs me! It gives me an overwhelming feeling of discomfort. It's well shot, well written and well acted. I'm pulled in to it even though I try to push it away. Wow. I just cannot describe how it makes me feel.
Posted by: Tina B | 08/14/2011 at 09:32 AM