Trashy noir is trashy. Some sick violence. Women treated very, very badly (and men, too -- you ever seen a can of pumpkin used as a weapon to the face?). Lots of full frontal unshaved female nudity. Murder. Sex. And an obnoxious dog that I kept hoping would either break free and attack someone -- or would get shot, just to shut it up. It's not going to be for everyone, but it's beautifully made -- I'd call it exquisite trash.

The sometimes-rambling story is anchored by superb performances all around. Kudos to Gina Gershon (yes, she's still got it -- better than ever) and Thomas Hayden Church ("I'm never aware"). Matthew McConaughey shines as the psycho cop who makes…

William Friedkin’s taut trailer trash thriller might be uneven but it is still one of the most memorable films of the year. An amoral family decide to bump off their alcoholic no good mother in order to claim her life insurance but their murderous scheme, unsurprisingly, doesn’t quite go as planned. This is the second Tracy Letts play Friedkin has brought to the screen (the first being Bug) and is by far the most successful.

Killer Joe is a hard film to accurately describe; it is part Southern noir and part pitch black comedy that is as shocking as it is funny. I can’t remember the last time I saw a film with such loathsome and morally repugnant characters. Even…

Part of Dastardly Difficult December: film nr.63

Where do I begin? I was rather taken by surprise by this film. When a film seems to gather momentum due to positive word of mouth, tend to completely ignore and avoid any and all reviews so I can go in unbiased. So I the only things I knew were that it was supposed to be good and that McConaughey apparently gave the best performance of his career. Yep, all that and then some.

Friedkin is perhaps the sickest and bravest octogenarian in the world. That he has the balls to produce some of the violent and sick scenes this film at his age makes me unequivocally admire him. Like his previous film,…

Film #17 in Driver’s December Death Penalty AKA The December Project , which is part of Cinebro's The December Challenge. 1 month, 100 movies.

102 minutes

"If you insult me again, I will cut your face off and wear it over my own. Do you understand?...Now suck it!" - Killer Joe Cooper

Why the hell did I watch this on Christmas Day? I don't regret it, but jeez. And why the hell do I have a massive grin on my face? Is there something the matter with me? That ending has just filled me with joy. I swear it was a happy ending.

Anyway, why the hell am I starting at the end? This film's all about building the tension,…

I never imagined a biopic on my life would have been so....fucked up.

The acting is outstanding. Everyone in the cast is in a role different from any other role they've done to the point they are almost unrecognizable; so different I don't think anyone could have fathomed them in such a role until now. That especially goes for McConaughey. Matthew McConaughey has this scary, stone cold gaze in his eyes. Like his eyes hurt or something. I've never seen McConaughey look like this before. He's never looked this intimidating in a film before and it really helped add to his characters brooding prescence. He's so calm and calculated throughout the film (while still being flat out disturbing) and when…

Killer Joe is the second Tracy Letts and William Friedkin collaboration involving somewhat unsavory characters from the American south. The first, being Bug which I truly, truly loved (which is mostly thanks to the wonderful mentally ill impersonator, Michael Shannon). I do not feel Killer Joe was as strong as Bug.

Here I go again complaining but why can't we have equal amounts of nudity in film, from both sexes? Within the first 10 minutes I had questioned myself on whether or not William Friedkin is at a "dirty old man" phase because the film was saturated with bush and fake breasts. If there was a woman on the screen, she was nude or wearing something transparent, in the rain.…