Kill List

Released Feb 3, 2012

1 hr. 34 min.

Mystery & Thriller

Horror

List

78%

96 Reviews

Tomatometer

58%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Events take a darker turn as a contract killer (Neil Maskell) and his business partner (Michael Smiley) carry out a new assignment.

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Critics Consensus

Kill List is an expertly executed slow-burn crime thriller that thrives on tension before morphing into visceral horror.

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Jeffrey P

Spent too much time setting up the conclusion and not enough time on it.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/25/24

Full Review

Gero C

A perfect combination of action and horror. I didn't expect that it would go from action and suspense scenes to horror and gore scenes. Honestly, I was surprised and fascinated. The performances are incredible, the action and violence scenes are incredible, the atmosphere and the concept are incredible. Highly recommended

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/10/24

Full Review

Colin M

A good movie until three-quarters through, when it became silly.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/04/24

Full Review

Jeremy

Maybe 35-40% of this movie is build up but it almost felt like unnecessary build up? If you didn't read that this is a "horror" movie going into it, you would think this is a basic sloppy amateur buddy hit man movie for the first hour. Then it changes entirely. I found this movie by searching "best folk lore horror movies Reddit". I'm gonna say that Google/reddit let me down on this one lol. This movie EASILY could've gotten a whole other star on this rating had it expanded on WHAT WAS HAPPENING AT THE END or why they happened the way they did the whole movie. Ever feel like you want to redo someone's film and then you realize you have 0 experience? Yeah. Weed.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/21/24

Full Review

Rosie E

Interesting yet due to its slow burn and overall feeling of uncertainty about what's going on as well as MC acting unlikeably it didn't slap the first time.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

11/12/23

Full Review

Martin F

As a movie, it is confusing but effective. Kill List takes a lot of time to prepare and to present the characters, giving dispersed clues here and there on something more sinister happening in the background. What looks like a drama/thriller turns, when the movie hits, into a full visceral horror with chilling visions and gory murders. We first follow those two mercenaries, one that found a new faith towards god and another one, the main character, who is more concerned about saving his family from falling apart. The mystery itself around their mission is slowly revealed, but at the end, a lot of it is left unexplained. As we only follow the whole story through the eyes of our hero, who is more concerned about saving his family, it makes sense that the movie focus on his trouble. That said, in the last fifteen minutes, forget all about the mystery and the characters development as the horror elements just smash anything else to reward the viewers expecting a horror movie.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/04/24

Full Review

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Ben Wheatley

Director

Neil Maskell

Jay

Michael Smiley

Gal

MyAnna Buring

Shel

Emma Fryer

Fiona

Ben Crompton

Justin

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J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

Wheatly aims for something like moral complexity by having one of the killers believe in God and the other aspire to be a good husband and father, but once the graphic violence starts, it upstages everything else.

Rated: 3/5

May 28, 2015

Full Review

Andrew Barker

Variety

Displaying both a nasty edge and a playful sense of humor -- but thankfully, never at the same time -- Brit import Kill List is several cuts above its fellow midbudget horror brethren.

Jan 8, 2013

Full Review

John DeFore

Hollywood Reporter

Deeply edgy, gory crime film maintains perfectly calibrated tension before dropping a bombshell that will be too much for some viewers.

Jan 8, 2013

Full Review

Justin Harrison

The Spool

Kill List is, by design, an extremely disturbing film.

Aug 8, 2023

Full Review

Brent McKnight

The Last Thing I See

An element of the occult, of some sinister, unknown outside force encroaching on the narrative, driving characters closer and closer to the brink of madness.

Rated: A

Jul 11, 2020

Full Review

Mattie Lucas

From the Front Row

Wheatley is clearly a clever craftsman, but by delving into Wicker Man territory for the film's terrifying denouement, he ends up sacrificing narrative depth for atmosphere.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 6, 2019

Full Review

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Synopsis

Events take a darker turn as a contract killer (Neil Maskell) and his business partner (Michael Smiley) carry out a new assignment.

Director: Ben Wheatley
Executive Producer: Robin Gutch, Hugo Heppell, Mark Herbert, Katherine Butler
Screenwriter: Ben Wheatley, Amy Jump
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: Warp X, Rook Films
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 3, 2012, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 1, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $26.3K

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