Killing Them Softly
User Score
5.7 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 176 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 110 out of 176
  2. Mixed: 29 out of 176
  3. Negative: 37 out of 176

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  1. RobbinsFilms
    Dec 1, 2012
    10
    Be warned, Killing Them Softly is an anti-thriller. Instead of gangster action, most of what you see is conversation. Or better yet, negotiation. Because the film is set in 2008 during the financial crisis, what these lowlifes are most desperately chasing, is just a bit more money. So even though the dialogue is razor-sharp and the performances are amazing, from an A list cast, most people don't want to watch negotiation for an hour and forty minutes. This is a more European take on the American crime drama, even though Andrew Dominik is Australian. The movie has a lot in common with Drive. And like that movie, this one will divide audiences between those put off by the angry tone, gruesome violence, and long periods of inaction. Which might be a problem if not for the incredible stylistic passion that bursts through every frame. Even when it's just two people talking in a bar, subtle camera movements, musical cues, and acting decisions always keep your attention.… Expand
  2. Leif
    Dec 21, 2012
    9
    Admittedly the political commentary is heavy handed but watching Pitt, looking every bit his almost 50 years stare down Gandolfini while running through mountains of great George V. Higgins dialogue in bars and seedy locations across a less-than beautiful New Orleans can allow near excessive violence and somewhat indulgent use of quaint old-fashioned music as a parallel to brutality function quite well as a whole.… Expand
  3. violentmilk
    Jan 1, 2013
    10
    supermegaultraepic
  4. mickeyboy
    Jan 2, 2013
    10
    epic
  5. mau1133
    Jan 26, 2013
    9
    ok, so they rob the wrong people, but is always funny when you know the guys pulling it off are idiots, so you are just waiting for them to mess up. um, oh i know its an action movie but i laughed so much ina seen that i cried and then had a stomach ache, these guys have a sawed off shot gun and well you can see part of the bullet, well that just made the movie for me, i still cant stop thing what would happen if you pull the trigger.… Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
64 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 42 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 42
  2. Mixed: 17 out of 42
  3. Negative: 2 out of 42
  1. Slate
    Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    Nov 30, 2012
    40
    The film is ultimately done in by Dominik's bursts of directorial grandiosity.
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  2. Salon.com
    Reviewed by: Andrew O'Hehir
    Nov 30, 2012
    80
    This is a deliberately chilly and nerve-wracking experience, and one of the bleakest portraits of American society seen on-screen in the last several decades.
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  3. Christian Science Monitor
    Reviewed by: Peter Rainer
    Nov 30, 2012
    83
    The dialogue is sharp and so are the performances. Andrew Dominik directed this neo-noir in a low-key comic style that's alternately gritty and fancy. The gritty stuff is best.
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