Colin Farrell and Yorgos
Lanthimos are
back together again after the politely affecting film - The Lobster, with a purposeful stray from comedy with a
sociological horror film – The Killing of
a Sacred Deer.
The Killing of a
Sacred Deer is about a doctor played by Colin Farrell, who accidently makes
an unfortunate mistake and kills a father during surgery. The father’s son
Martin, played terrifyingly focused by Barry Keoghan, is guiltily guided by the
doctor as a favor for the surgical accident. When the doctor decides to cut
ties with Martin, the troubled boy decides to threaten the doctor with a threat
of an unknown disease that will plague his whole family if he doesn’t kill one
of the members.
Following The Lobster,
The Killing of a Sacred Deer is very much
about the existent and the extremes of cultural tradition within mainstream
societies beliefs; as in The Lobster
dealing with the extreme feelings towards marriage, love and the naturally
cultural trajectory of democracy towards cultism, and The Killing of a Sacred Deer is therefore about the extremes of the
nuclear family, patriarchy, job hierarchy, classism and the powerful ease of
boyhood compared to girlhood that most of society is at the mercy of, e.g. –
Martin. Every family member, doctor, male and female do exactly what you’d think
they’d do within the confines of stereotypical behaviour when push comes to
shove. As such the doctor’s wife played by Nicole Kidman having to sell away
her dignity to save her kids, and Colin Farrell’s doctor character seeming calm
and control but selling himself into brutal masculine tactics to get his way. Yet
Martin is a blank slant saying things threateningly in a calm way, being
exactly what he is, an enigma, untouchable and unaffected as a teenage white
male who will eventually become a white grown man in charge, as Colin Farrell’s
character precedes him. The Killing of a
Sacred Deer is absolutely about the banality of male hierarchy, class hierarchy
and the banal submissiveness expected of women. Though it’s said this film is
based on Greek folklore, it is much more effective as a modern message of what
our so called progressive society still perpetuates with gender politics. Further
more the film also expresses underlining thoughts about the North American
healthcare system, and it’s robotic disconnected, indifferent quality towards
the very people it’s created for.
Barry Keoghan portrays a hypnotic creepy performance that
oddly goes hand in hand with Yorgos Lanthimos short cut and sometimes comedic
directing style, and that metaphorically and accurately portrays the relentless
blankly removed/sinister intentions of a trouble teenage male out for revenge
in Martin. Nicole Kidman and Colin Farrell give thoughtfully quick cut while
naturalistic performances, making some of their best acting in the past few
years. All this cut together with a suspicious, darkly ominous Kubrick -esq score
and steadied shots, and it’s wonderfully intriguing how Yorgos Lanthimos style
can switch to funny then horrific.
-
Maurice Jones
