Killer Joe

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Killer Joe

TV-MA

2011

1h 41m

Crime

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

80%

Tomatometer

168 Reviews

61%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

A cop (Matthew McConaughey) who moonlights as a hit man agrees to kill the hated mother of a desperate drug dealer (Emile Hirsch) in exchange for a tumble with the young man's virginal sister (Juno Temple).

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Critics Consensus

Violent, darkly comic, and full of strong performances, Killer Joe proves William Friedkin hasn't lost his touch, even if the plot may be too lurid for some.

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Tom Long

Detroit News

If you like your movies filled with twisted humor, sexual perversion, psychological intimidation and sudden violence, "Killer Joe" is the flick for you.

Rated: B

Aug 31, 2012

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Joe Williams

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Watching "Killer Joe" to the bitter end is like playing the Pick 6 lottery and getting three of the numbers right. You don't win anything, but you still think you're smarter than all those other idiots.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 24, 2012

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Bill Goodykoontz

Arizona Republic

[Friedkin] has retained his touch ... all these years later. And in Matthew McConaughey, he has the perfect vehicle for madness.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 23, 2012

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

In Killer Joe, director William Friedkin reaches magnificent new lows as he descends into playwright Tracy Letts' world of southern-fried depravity, stupidity, sexuality, and possibly (almost certainly) madness.

Rated: 4/4

Oct 3, 2022

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Mitchell Beaupre

Paste Magazine

Killer Joe is pitched squarely as a rotted black comedy of errors, a cavalcade of one disaster after another from a bunch of fools tripping over themselves in the pursuit of the one thing that drives America: Greed

Rated: 8.5/10

Sep 23, 2022

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Kip Mooney

College Movie Review

You won't see anything else like it this year.

Rated: B

Sep 18, 2021

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Rob R

Disturbingly different in a good way. Extreme and absurd, I couldn’t take my eyes off it for a minute of its running time. All the lead actors are fantastic, MM especially. Not for everyone, be advised it’s NC-17 for a reason!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/12/25

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james l

Gave it about half an hour and switched it off. Just couldn't get interested in this.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

09/08/25

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nick s

Great production value. The cast was excellent and so was the directing. My only gripe would be the edginess - nudity, violence, language, drumsticks. It was okay but didn't always feel necessary.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/04/25

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Stephen C

Success in 1 hour and 41 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ages 17 and older!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/31/25

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Dave S

While the first half of director William Friedkin’s career was pretty impressive, things dropped off significantly over the second half, eventually wrapping up his career with the controversial and grimy Killer Joe. Matthew McConaughey plays the title character, a quietly menacing police detective who makes money on the side as a hitman, hired by a squalid and dysfunctional family to kill the matriarch for the insurance money. McConaughey is great in the lead role and most of the supporting cast is outstanding, but Emil Hirsch, playing the wayward son and catalyst for the murder scheme, seems totally out of his league, sucking the energy from most of the scenes he’s in. While Killer Joe is generally well done (with a more than memorable final scene), you’ll need a shower to scrub off the vileness that the movie leaves behind.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

07/25/25

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Rene M

Not a must watch but watchable.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

07/10/25

Full Review

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William Friedkin

Director

Matthew McConaughey

"Killer" Joe Cooper

Emile Hirsch

Chris Smith

Juno Temple

Dottie Smith

Gina Gershon

Sharla Smith

Thomas Haden Church

Ansel Smith

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Synopsis

A cop (Matthew McConaughey) who moonlights as a hit man agrees to kill the hated mother of a desperate drug dealer (Emile Hirsch) in exchange for a tumble with the young man's virginal sister (Juno Temple).

Director: William Friedkin
Producer: Nicolas Chartier, Scott Einbinder
Screenwriter: Tracy Letts
Production Co: Voltage Pictures, Ana Media
Rating: TV-MA, R (Graphic Nudity|Drug Use|Strong Disturbing Violence|Language|Sexuality)
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 3, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.0M
Runtime: 1h 41m

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