The Killing of a Sacred Deer

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The Killing of a Sacred Deer

R

2017

2h 1m

Mystery & Thriller

Horror

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

79%

Tomatometer

282 Reviews

63%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Dr. Steven Murphy is a renowned cardiovascular surgeon who presides over a spotless household with his wife and two children. Lurking at the margins of his idyllic suburban existence is Martin, a fatherless teen who insinuates himself into the doctor's life in gradually unsettling ways. Soon, the full scope of Martin's intent becomes menacingly clear when he confronts Steven with a long-forgotten transgression that will shatter his domestic bliss forever.

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Critics Consensus

The Killing of a Sacred Deer continues director Yorgos Lanthimos' stubbornly idiosyncratic streak -- and demonstrates again that his is a talent not to be ignored.

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Robert Daniels

812filmreviews

09/05/2018

3.5/4

Has a doctor ever killed your father, and you used voodoo to get back him? Yea, me too. Yorgos Lanthimos's follow-up to The Lobster, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, is every bit as creepy, dark, and ironic as the former.

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Namrata Joshi

The Hindu

07/11/2018

The Killing of a Sacred Deer scares, baffles, unsettles, annoys and peels off the happy smokescreen to reveal the discomfiting reality of yet another upper class family.

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Karl Quinn

The Age (Australia)

02/15/2018

4/5

Bleakly brilliant.

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Josh Goller

Spectrum Culture

Mar 24

Yorgos Lanthimos' spare, absurd and tragic film explores the fragility of human constructs and the illusion of control through characters who suppress emotion until they crack and the world crumbles.

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Aoife O'Ceallachain

Film Ireland Magazine

Jan 5

Not for the faint-hearted, Sacred Deer is a good place to start for anyone unfamiliar with Lanthimos’ work, and will not disappoint disciples of the Greek Weird Wave

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David Day

Horror Movie Talk

Aug 11

8/10

f you don’t mind facing some disturbing material and themes, I would recommend anyone who is looking for a seriously solid psychological horror movie to see The Killing of a Sacred Deer.

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Kristofer K

@kbkaizer 4d

This thriller puts a nuclear family's fate in the hands of the father figure - a modern take on a family curse.

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Schlub Z.

@SchlubZero Apr 26

More interesting than it is good, I think. Some downright gorgeous cinematography and magnetic performances but ultimately feels like a tangled bunch of Christmas lights out of a tote when the credits roll due to, I suspect, the constraints of its mythological inspiration/structure. Soft recommend for anyone who likes weird shit.

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stephen B

@RT02381805 Apr 12

The early dialogue and accompanying score just suck you into the impending doom that awaits.

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Martin P

@endymetal Apr 8

one of the weirdest drama horror I have seen

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Alex H

@Thebigshiblowski Mar 31

My third watch of this movie was a firm reminder that it’s one of the best surrealist, psychological thrillers ever made. It really is like a nightmare. I can’t help but laugh at all of the morons giving it one star for being "slow." It builds tension from start to finish, and it gets so tense you’ll barely be able to sit still.

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Cuddy G

@RT76165948 Mar 23

Not a thriller just a stupid slow movie that makes you sit hoping something happens and when the end comes you go "WOW i wasted my life watching this dog shit film"

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Synopsis

Dr. Steven Murphy is a renowned cardiovascular surgeon who presides over a spotless household with his wife and two children. Lurking at the margins of his idyllic suburban existence is Martin, a fatherless teen who insinuates himself into the doctor's life in gradually unsettling ways. Soon, the full scope of Martin's intent becomes menacingly clear when he confronts Steven with a long-forgotten transgression that will shatter his domestic bliss forever.

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
Producer: Ed Guiney, Yorgos Lanthimos
Screenwriter: Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou
Distributor: A24
Production Co: Element Pictures
Rating: R (Disturbing Violent Content|Disturbing Sexual Content|Language|Some Graphic Nudity)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 20, 2017, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 19, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.3M
Runtime: 2h 1m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)