They Will Kill You

GoMovieReviews Rating: ★★1/2

Rated: MA15+

Directed by: Kirill Sokolov

Written by: Sokolov & Alex Litvak

Produced by: Andy Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti and Dan Kagan

Starring: Zazie Beetz, Myha’La, Paterson Joseph, Tom Felton, Heather Graham, and Patricia Arquette.

‘No one’s going to cage us again.’

Two sisters hold hands as they gaze up at a shop window with plastic models sitting around a dinner table.  A family.  Together.

It’s pouring rain.

Fleeing an abusive father, ‘I know things have been difficult since mum died,’ an understatement, the two sisters, Asia (Zazie Beetz) and Maria (Myha’La) are trying to make their way to New York.  Until Asia is forced to abandon her little sister.

Ten years later, Asia knocks on the door to the Virgil apartment building, introducing herself to apartment manager, Lily Woodhouse (Patricia Arquette) as a new maid.

‘How long have you been working here?’ Asia asks.

Lily replies, ‘It feels like an eternity.’

The hints are heavy.

As is the black pentagram with red light backing at the top of the building.

They Will Kill You is a bloody parody of Rosemary’s Baby with added gore like an optic nerve trailing an eyeball included.

But, I didn’t find the dark humour funny.

There’s a Quentin Tarantino effort at blood spray and the strong female lead character, Asia is reminiscent of, Uma Thurman’s character, Beatrix ‘The Bride’ Kiddo, AKA Black Mamba in Kill Bill (Volume I and II).

Here, there isn’t the same foundation to make those bloody scenes mean something.

There is more to the story of, They Will Kill You as the film progresses, but it’s really a gore-fest with a cool soundtrack.

Superficial and borderline boring, the film is saved by the clever camerawork of a sudden close-up to draw the scene into another space, with added moments of following the characters viewed side-on as they crawl through the wall spaces of the building, so it feels like watching a bloody slasher game, with characters slicing off heads for points.

The storyline revolves around the two sisters, ‘family reunions can be upsetting,’ and lead character, Asia is likable and vicious and unbelievably unkillable.

It all adds up to a slasher that’s meant for an adrenaline watch but ends up being a boring blood fest because spraying blood loses its impact after a while.

Superficial, high-octane drivel that passes the time surprisingly fast.