Kill List
User Score
6.1 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 24 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 24
  3. Negative: 4 out of 24

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  1. MarcDoyle
    Feb 12, 2012
    7
    Fairy brutal flick, but still with a light-hearted, buddy-flick edge to much of it. It has flavors of Blair Witch and Eyes Wide Shut to it as well, not to give too much away. The central character's relationship with his ex-military Swedish wife is interesting, and his partnership with his best friend / co-hitman Gail is very normal. Can't give away too much of the plot, but I'll just say the end is a little over-the-top brutal and shocking. And a very quick foreshadowing from the first act puts you on edge for the rest of the film. Unsettling, indeed.… Expand
  2. pinattar
    Feb 12, 2012
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. i haven't seen a film like this since Mulholland Dr., a really well made film. the acting, directing and writing is great. but what stood out the most was the tone and atmosphere of the film, this i think is a prime example of a "psychological thriller/horror". i really loved how the film started out as a thriller/action and then evolved into a thriller horror. and what a horror it was, i can't remember the last time i was this scared watching a film (i think its mainly because of the weirdness of it all). but the main question i think most of you will have is what was it all about. was it a dream or was it reality? that's the best explanation i've read of this film and the director has said that many of the thing in the movie were taken from his nightmares. there are a lot of reoccurring images that occur throughout the film. ex. in the beginning Jay is seen "play fighting" with his wife and child, Sam is on his mother's back (just like in the end of the film), they are using fake swords (in the end they use knives) and Jay "kills" them (just like in the end of the film). another ex. the rabbit that the cats kills has it's guts coming out and when the cat is killed Gal says that he always loved the cat (in the tunnel seen Gal is stabbed ans his guts are spilling out just like the rabbits). and finally at different parts of the you hear someone saying "wake up" to Sam. the only problem i have with this is that you don't know where the dream stars and where it ends. it should be noted that the director has said that "shes [Shel] laughing at sheer crushing irony of it all", if that helps at all. so apart of the ambiguity of it all, it really is a great film. it's one of those movies that you need to watch more than once to fully understand it.… Expand
  3. Andys_Reviews
    Dec 9, 2012
    7
    The film starts with what looks like an average domestic drama with Jay and Shel constantly falling out and making up. But once Jay and Cal set about their work the whole atmosphere of the piece changes. There is a great sense of mystery with several aspects of the plot not fully explained, leaving it to the audience to decide, this I really liked. I should warn potential viewers that there are scenes of very extreme violence and an awful lot of swearing (so be prepared). Over all, I found it a decent watch with some very nice aspects and an ending that… Expand
  4. Halfwelshman
    Feb 24, 2012
    6
    Kill List works extremely well as a taut, quite terrifying horror film about an out-of control British hitman. Neil Maskell is mesmerising as Jay, a frustrated ex-soldier who returns to his past career of contract killing to support his family, but as his emotions begin to intrude, the stress and paranoia linked to his morally dubious job steadily fracture his sanity. Michael Smiley also impresses as Gal, Jay's level-headed long-time hit partner and friend, as does MyAnna Buring as Jay's loving but frustrated wife Shel. The first half of the film is excellent, with tight plotting, steadily building tension and a semi-improvised script. The second half unfortunately becomes a little incoherent and difficult to follow (possibly a deliberate decision by director Ben Wheatley to reflect Jay's unstable state of mind) and the finale, where the film goes all Wickerman is just plain stupid. Kill List works as a film when it keep things real and close to home. When we're following Jay, his family, and the impact his job has on himself and his family, the film is great - dramatically effective, terrifying, and socially relevant all at once. When the film becomes weirder, more fantastical and surreal, it unfortunately becomes silly and pointless. Luckily, this element of the film is very small, only emerging towards the end, so doesn't have the chance to do much lasting damage. If it weren't for its annoying final act, Kill List could have been a British horror classic. A film that begins so well, that offers so much promise as a relevant, scary horror, deserves a much better payoff, and unfortunately this means the film as a whole is good, but not anything exceptional.… Expand
  5. cabrita
    Sep 30, 2012
    9
    A gruesomely entertaining scary flick. It demands to be talked about seen again and again. It's hard to say anything about the plot but there are so many intricate themes and interpretive parts of the plot that will leave you thinking about it long after you've seen it . A mesmerising picture.
  6. snailmovies
    Feb 9, 2012
    9
    In Ben Wheatley's horror-thriller, two hit men go on a traumatic and soft objective into the occult. It's so extreme that some will look away.

    If you're a hit man by business, then you've already created a cope with the demon, even if those you remove tumble into the type of people spend of the drug-dealing, kidnapping, warmongering type. So really, it should come as no shock that Jay and     Gal, the eliminating blokes in the draped horror-thriller "Kill Record," have gotten themselves into a unusual fix, though having to close a agreement in our blood should have been a tip-off.

    The revealing if not exactly fulfilling night that penetrates into every part of this newest English transfer from movie maker Ben Wheatley requires it is time getting to the serious evildoing that the movie director and his co-writer, Amy Leap, have in thoughts, however.

    Instead, it starts with a shouting go with between Jay (Neil Maskell) and his spouse, Shel (MyAnna Buring). After botching a job, Jay has been out of perform for several weeks, charges and stress are flipping up, all of which Shel sits out with agonizing invective. To which Jay replies in type.

    That units the level and the overall tone for this grown-up home of disasters. His old associate Gal (Michael Smiley) wants him to consider one last job together. He does, but there is a cost. It includes three visits, with Jay progressively more unhinged, each get rid of more chaotic than the last. Gal is incapable to control him in; their justifications about what is and isn't appropriate when it comes to eliminating still won't make you for what's on display.

    This is a far more extreme movie than Wheatley's first, 2009's "Down Rooftop." Though it had criminal offense at its middle as well, it was sensible by a dry paradox and far less our blood. There is no counteract in "Kill Record," with one world so constant in its gore that it creates the infamous lift world in "Drive" light in evaluation.

    What "Kill List" and "Down Terrace" discuss is Wheatley's really like of heavy planning, though like Jay, you wish someone would sometimes control him in too. His are testimonies that need interest and usually compensate, losing enticing parts along the way, then conclusion with a hit. Now Wheatley is enthusiastic about the heart and how it can be damaged and co-opted. Black products, but it gives the characters a lot to perform with.

    Maskell and Buring confirm the best couple, warm as they simple the love-hate of a plagued wedding. And viewing Maskell change from a type of Wally Mitty of hit men to gigantic is, I have to confess, interesting.

    The street here brings Gal and Jay toward the occult. Associates and guests keep flipping up in unanticipated methods, and the unusual ritualistic methods that include demon praise begin materializing. Including to the common unease is the gritty, documented look obtained by movie director of photography Laurie Increased, who taken "Down Terrace" as well. The camera is unflinching, and so is Wheatley, as the tale goes toward the impossible. It's eventually left to you when and whether to look away.    … Expand
  7. DTDunn
    May 24, 2013
    3
    This poor excuse for a movie is like some sort of bad acid trip. You just want it to end so that you can get on with your life. How this disgusting film garnered one award, let alone many, is beyond me. This is garbage.
  8. Kissellian
    Mar 18, 2012
    4
    I had only heard good things about the Kill List, so going into it I was expecting something fairly amazing. The basic premise is that an out-of-work, ex-soldier hitman who screwed up his last job gets a final chance to prove himself. The basic difference between this and many other films with similar premises is that he has a wife, a son, and a best friend, also a hitman, who is there to make sure he doesn't screw it up. First, while I don't usually have much problem understanding British movies, I couldn't understand much of the dialogue in the opening scenes and had to rely on what I'd read about the plot to replace what I can only imagine was backstory. When the action started, I began to enjoy watching the main character begin to lose his composure as the mysteries of this job unfolded. I was along for the ride until the very end. I had expected some closure, some explanation of the weirdness the climax had built up to, but instead there was merely a shock and then it was over. I still have no idea why most of the events occurred or what the motivations were of those standing in the background pulling strings. I am still scratching my head at all of the positive reviews out there, many of which echo my confusion. For some reason, they're simply not that concerned about it, but for me it ruined what might have otherwise been a unique and enjoyable thriller.… Expand
  9. TheDiscerner
    Dec 21, 2012
    5
    A surprisingly silly film. It had good performances but the direction coasted on its downbeat naturalism. Also, the editing was too scattershot for me to properly engage and the ambient, 'unsettling' soundscape seemed a little one note. Ultimately, the script needed more development, which the direction could never overcome. I have heard the director justify the extreme violence, but unless the film expresses a real purpose or poetic vision, it remains a nasty gimmick.… Expand
  10. Seriosity
    Nov 4, 2012
    8
    Great for it's atmosphere, sound design, and boldness. The third act still has me completely confounded, though. I dislike the turn it took, but I can still appreciate it.

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
67 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 22
  3. Negative: 3 out of 22
  1. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Rene Rodriguez
    Apr 12, 2012
    88
    One of the scariest films I've seen in ages, although I cannot in all honesty explain exactly what the movie is about.
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  2. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Peter Hartlaub
    Mar 15, 2012
    75
    Kill List has a slow build, but don't be lulled into complacency. This is one of the most violent and disturbing films you'll see in an art house.
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  3. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    Mar 14, 2012
    75
    The movie may leave you scratching your head way too much when it's over. Yet it proves Ben Wheatley not only knows how to make a movie, but he knows how to make three at the same time.
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