“They Will Kill You” follows a woman who answers a cryptic ad for a housekeeping job at a New York City high-rise. There, she discovers that residents have been vanishing without a trace for decades, fueling whispers of a satanic cult.
By design, everything about “They Will Kill You” feels exaggerated. The camera movements and editing are frantic and over-the-top. The performances are almost cartoonish. The sound design is bizarre, highlighting obscure sounds that defy what your brain would expect. To top it off, the story is unpredictable (for a while, at least). This all culminates in a movie that has an immediate identity, with director Kirill Sokolov delivering blood-soaked fun while aiming for laughs along the way.
Cinematographer Isaac Bauman has masterful control here. During moments of carnage, he puts the audience directly inside the action. Whether it’s spinning in circles or gliding through hallways, the camera is always moving. Amplified zoom-ins and zoom-outs add to the comedy as well.
Luke Doolan’s editing also plays a role. Storytelling-wise, “They Will Kill You” can, at times, be all over the place. The editing keeps the distressed nature of the narrative in check, remaining discernible despite constant new reveals that change the rules.
Zazie Beetz (Asia Reeves) plays the perfect final girl: witty, rageful and… a complete badass. This is definitively her movie, and not many actors could pull off what she does. She’s a full-blown action hero from beginning to end, with physicality that feels believable. She also delivers a number of memorable one-liners.
Tom Felton (Kevin), Heather Graham (Sharon) and Myha’la (Maria Reeves) each bring charm to their supporting roles as well.
“They Will Kill You” is confident in its practical effects. Heads blow off. Blood sprays across rooms. Eyeballs roll across the floor. Bodies burn. The film never shies away from its campy, old-school nature. CGI is used, but mainly to enhance already impressive practical work rather than distract from it.
Between the killing, however, there isn’t much to hold onto. Alex Litvak and Sokolov’s script puts the focus on carnage over character. And rightfully so. But it also prevents the film from extending much beyond its basic premise. A sister relationship sits at the core of “They Will Kill You” (similar to another recent release, “Ready or Not 2: Here I Come”). The result is familiar, with the dynamic coming across as more forced than focused.
Unlike “Ready or Not 2,” though, “They Will Kill You” makes up for this with originality. The body count is extremely high. It finds plenty of ways to keep raising the stakes, even as the runtime progresses.
It’s because of this, however, that you do have to suspend disbelief. The film expects that from its audience. For those who can’t buy in, plenty of sighs and eye-rolls may follow.
At a certain point, the nature of the action does grow repetitive. With little else to invest in outside of the violence, it becomes a waiting game until the next fight sequence. This traps the film in a cycle it never fully escapes.
The conclusion breaks free from that repetition – while also staying within it. The final 15 minutes of “They Will Kill You” may make or break the experience. It pushes the comedy to the extreme… and somehow, it works.
“They Will Kill You” knows exactly what it is and never strays from it. There’s little character, but a lot of carnage. It remains relentlessly entertaining because of this.
Rating: 4 out of 5
