Directed by Antonio Campos and produced Jake Gyllenhaal, The Devil All The Time follows a young man who is devoted to protecting his loved ones in a town full of corruption and sinister characters.
So this is yet another movie that came seemingly out of nowhere but had caught everyone’s attention due to its large ensemble cast. Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Bill Skarsgård, Riley Keough, Sebastian Stan, Jason Clarke, Haley Bennet, Harry Melling and several others make up quite the cast of characters, in what I could describe as an absolutely dark, disturbing and brutal but phenomenal story.
I love this movie. I really do. Everything about this movie is incredible but there is no denying that its greatest strength comes from the performances. Tom Holland… Tom Holland was fucking awesome! Unlike others, I never had any doubt about him delivering a great performance in this, but holy hell did he go beyond my own expectations with this role. He has had a number of other roles outside of Spider-Man that have gone unnoticed, but I definitely think that this is the movie where people are finally going to take him seriously, more than just “the kid who plays Spider-Man.” If you are reading this, Tom Holland, you were fucking awesome.
We also have Robert Pattinson as Reverend Preston Teagardin who is no joke probably the most evil motherfucker in this movie. A lot of this film does tackle themes of corruption of religious faith, and at the center of it is Robert Pattinson’s character, who gives such a scenery chewing performance that this is going to be one of those love-to-hate characters. This also shows that Robert Pattinson has the ability to play great villains in films, which I don’t think many expected. He may not have a lot of time on screen but when he did he had the entire stage all to himself.
Another stand out that I haven’t heard anyone really talk about yet is Bill Skarsgård, who offers a lot of really intense and emotional scenes. He really gave a lot to this performance and it’s criminal not to bring notice to it.
Same goes for the entire cast, they really bring so much of their A-game to the story, making it feel alive and impactful. And hell, even Harry Melling really had a chance to shine here, especially with the fucking spider sermon that I swear is going to haunt my dreams because of just how much of an arachnophobe I am.
There is such an intense atmosphere throughout this movie, as well as the some interesting takes on religion and religious punishment, ones that we may have briefly seen in other films but not in the detail this one goes into. People have compared this to There Will Be Blood and Beyond The Pines, which I understand, but again even if a subject has been done before in previous works if it can be done in a new and interesting way it can be amazing. And that’s exactly what this film does. It also takes place across various decades, where various important events have influenced the story or various characters. In a way it is similar to Pulp Fiction in a sense.
It is also interesting how the story really just gets you at the edge of your seat constantly with how every one of these characters have their own secrets or demons, so that any point can result in catastrophic consequences. All it takes is one spark for things to go nuts and when it happens it’s unsuspecting and shockingly brutal. It’s very psychological and I absolutely love that it’s never simple, making for a more realistic story.
The cinematography and editing is excellent all the way through, adding a lot to the intensity and atmosphere of the film, as well as fleshing out the emotional turmoil characters are experiencing. The same can be said for the score, which was also excellent. This was such a beautifully crafted film all around and it deserves to get a lot of recognition, especially for the performances and scenes that really stay with you.
As for issues I’d say perhaps the length and narrative structure could have had some last minute touches. I was never bored by any means and I am always on board with slow burn films, but it isn’t hard to notice some parts of this film that dragged on a bit too long and could have been shorter. There is also narration from the author of the book the film this was based on, which is a nice detail, but I feel that even the narration could have been dialed back a bit. But the good things about this film really overshadowed the bad by a long shot.
This may not be a film for everyone, which is understandable, because it gets seriously disturbing. However, you really shouldn’t judge it without seeing it, or just going off of what critics have been saying. From what I understand there are critics who are once again calling out this film for its violence just like Joker, which I think is utterly ridiculous. Why are we still on this subject? Movies do not cause violence. End of story. And this film has so much more to offer than just violence, yet they choose to focus on it because it’s how they make headlines and get attention. This film is bold and not afraid to hit hard, and those are the movies I love, and there needs to be a lot more of them. I’m going to give The Devil All The Time an A.
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