Killer Joe (R)

For the age-old plot premise of large debts, hit men, and cover-ups, it has been far too long since these elements have come together in a major motion picture. That wait was over, however, with “Killer Joe” a disturbing and bizarre film starring Matthew McCounaughey, Emile Hirsch, and Juno Temple that, while lock stock with some predictable plot lines and slow pacing, provides gruesome entertainment in all the right places. However, its unfortunate decision to try its hand at a Tarantino-esque ending, on top of a couple of glaring loose ends, might find “Killer Joe” ultimately missing its mark.

Chris (Emile Hirsch, “Into the Wild”) is in trouble: he owes $6K to some unsavory mobsters or he’ll be killed. His father, Ansel (Thomas Haden Church, “Sideways”) and new wife are no help until Chris comes up with a plan that will benefit them all: He plans to hire a rouge hit man named ‘Killer Joe’ (Matthew McConaughey) to take out his mother (whom he believes stole a large amount of cocaine from him), and split her $50K insurance policy between himself, his father, his new wife, and his sister, Dottie (Juno Temple) after paying Joe his fee.

Of course, movies like this are never what they seem, and what should be a relatively easy endeavor sees more mishaps, hijinks, and screw-ups than meets the eye. From the beginning, Chris looses control of the situation. His original intent to pay Joe after the hit causes Joe to walk out until he comes up with the plan to take Chris’ sister as a ‘retainer’ until he can get his $25K cut. This sits just fine with Ansel and his wife, but not so much with Chris, who is clinically overprotective of his sister and wants this madman nowhere near her. Was there any possibility for this to end well?

What works about “Killer Joe,” as a movie, is the remarkable acting performance that McConaughey brings to the table. There’s no note of the leading-man roles from his legion of rom coms here, nor the tender Jake Brigance of “A Time to Kill” fame. Killer Joe is a calculating hit man (also working as a Texas detective) whose employment is borne of a lack of emotion and leaves nothing to chance. “Did you ever shoot anybody?” Dottie asks. “Yes,” says Killer Joe. “Did they die?” His response shows the lack of emotion lining his character. “Well they have.” He means to get paid for ‘providing a service.’ When he talks about providing this service, his eyes are lined with a cold detachment. When he realizes he may not get paid for providing it, his eyes are fire red.

The movie wisely places the hit on the much-hated Mrs. Smith in the background, where other movies may have made it the focus. “Killer Joe” weaves in and out of a typical gangster flick and a deadly fatal attraction. Chris gets beat up by a bunch of ruffians when they get impatient for the money he owes them, and while his sister is alarmed it’s clear no one else is. His face is bruised, his arm may be broken. Should he go to the hospital? “He’ll be fine,” says Killer Joe. “He just got a whupping.”

The acting from the supporting cast ranges from passable to fairly competent. As Chris, Emile Hirsch (who I haven’t seen really tested since the 2007 film “Into the Wild”) puts forth a great performance as Chris, an unscrupulous youth who seeks to undo the mistakes of his past with one final transgression. Thomas Haden Church, as Ansel, likewise surprised me. He transforms into blue-collar trailer trash with ease, and his relationship with his son seems to smack more of a tragic friendship than father and son. Though Gina Garshon does a fairly good job playing the spinster/cheat/wife, her character Sharla was probably my least favorite in the film, as her scenes seem more included for plot progression, and had less depth than the rest of the misbegotten Smith family.

Aside from McCounaughey, the other breakout performance rests unexpectedly with Juno Temple. As Dottie, she manages to bring a powerful yet naïve depth to her character that belies innocence, yet knowledge of the world that flies in the face of her young age. She talks of everything, even the most mundane events, as though they are wistful and wonderful, going along with every step of the plan – from killing the never onscreen Mrs. Smith to her deflowering at the hands of Killer Joe – as though it was all she ever wanted. She’s simple brushed with careless; innocent paired with corrupt. And she’s a relatively unexpected high point to an already bizarre movie.

“Killer Joe,” for all its eventual violence, is rather slow paced, yet successfully builds tension between its antagonist and the hapless Smith family – who, while sinister in their own rights – maybe don’t deserve everything that happens to them. The movie seems to fulfill the adage “If you play with fire, you’re going to get burned.” The acting is right on, but the climax, brutal, sardonic, and sudden, seems to blur the edges of reality a little too much, and, unfortunately, leaves a little too much up to the imagination.

“Killer Joe” features an entertaining script, McConaughey on the very top of his form, and enough violence and humor to make it gruesomely funny. Fans of action and drama may love it – but a last minute, anti-climactic twist – even if an unavoidable conclusion to the plottings of the Smith family – may leave viewers gripping their seat one minute, only to have their arms flop dead the next.

– by Mark Ziobro