With a name like Zazie Beetz, it’s no wonder the actress finds herself at the centre of an electric action-horror and vengeance slasher, with plenty of blood and guts to boot. Previously co-starring in equally explosive and explicit action outings like Deadpool 2 and Bullet Train, along with more focused efforts in Joker, its sequel and Atlanta, it’s a thrilling leap into the top bill for her.
They Will Kill You surrounds her character’s intemperate escape from a Satanist cult, essentially interchangeable with the rich. The film is not subtle nor nuanced in its depiction of the seemingly 1%, and hopes you come to accept the little it offers in subtle social critique, in exchange for its own sacrificial offerings: over-the-top, frenzied and gruesome kills. It’s perhaps an unambitious target given the recent influx of ‘eat the rich’ films since around Ready or Not’s release in 2019 (particularly significant as its sequel also releases this week, after premiering at SXSW along with They Will Kill You).
Those comparisons are inevitable, but the distinct nature of a female-led action-horror should not be overshadowed by further comparison. There’s real influences here like that bubble over the surface, the main one being Kill Bill, in its vengeful premise, stylised violence and the attempt at chapter breaks. There’s no doubt They Will Kill You is derivative, but it pulls some of the best parts of these and other female-centric slashers to congregate an empowering role for Zazie Beetz, and much like her victims, she more than kills it. Films such as this, while not performing well critically, are revived much later in homes and across lunch tables in casual conversation and are certainly launching pads into deserved stardom. Not quite cult classic, movies like Escape Room, Bird Box, Happy Death Day and likely, They Will Kill You become talking points amongst mainstream horror fans, act as a gateway into the genre for younger fans, and are capable of providing more than enough entertainment for a night in and connection between viewers, despite seeming uninventive.
We have only begun to see females consistently leading these films in the past decade or so, and their presence certainly doesn’t constitute a separate genre with its own conventions. Intertextuality goes both ways, and particularly within action-horror, it is natural to rehash old ideas, and not always a sign of lack of imagination.
It does however, choose style over substance in these pursuits, with a select few of these choices crashing and burning. This is of course a reference to a particularly exaggerated kill scene involving a trolley, an elevator shaft, some fire and Aphase’s Majesty. In this case, the regrettable invention of orchestral trap pairs perfectly with the film’s dragged out and needlessly explosive ending. It’s moments like this that manage to stretch a 90 minute film into yet another project that leaves audiences with a sour taste in their mouth after one too many fake-out endings. The stylistic approach may have worked better with improved commitment, there’s some real sentient camera work in the beginning, a much needed respite from the overly cinematic static and wide shots that’s begun to infect almost every genre of film. As a note, the colour grading is a joy to look at, bright and saturated, paired with lively architecture. The entire film takes place within one building in Manhattan and ordinarily, the framing of a film in this way might go undetected. Again, recent trends in excessively melodramatic colour grading and mise-en-scene can be thanked for making anything other than grey seem like a miraculous filmmaking choice. Back to the camera work, it’s all but abandoned in the middle section of the film, only to return for the previously mentioned volatile action sequences that form the third act. In choosing aesthetics over content, They Will Kill You seems to almost be self-aware in its imitative nature, but ultimately falls flat in execution, and does not seem devoted enough to the cause.
Despite a few missteps, the action aspects of They Will Kill You is no doubt the highlight of the film when compared to its horror. The tension it creates is incredibly forced, relying on jumpscares that never eventuate, and one too many awkwardly long periods of darkness and silence. The combination of action and horror works greatly in its savage kills, but in moments of strict ghoulishness, particularly at the beginning, it reads more as a parody of a horror than one itself.
Much like its patchworked foundation, They Will Kill You has some great and memorable moments that will inevitably be overshadowed by less favourable ones. Zazie Beetz may not be enough to completely save it, but she certainly makes a great case for herself in the process.