Kill List

About this episode

The episode discusses the film 'Kill List' and its complex themes of horror and ritual.

A hitman thriller that slowly mutates into something ancient, ritualistic and deeply disturbing. The more we watched Kill List , the less certain we became about what we were actually seeing. Ben Wheatley's Kill List has built a reputation as one of the most important British horror films of the 21st century, and after revisiting it the FolknHell crew found themselves just as fascinated, confused and impressed as ever. What begins as the story of two ex-soldiers turned contract killers gradually unfolds into something much stranger. Jay and Gal take on a lucrative assignment, only to discover a trail of ritualistic murders, grateful victims, occult symbols and a conspiracy that stretches far beyond a simple kill contract. The conversation explores the film's claustrophobic handheld style, its brutal realism, and its portrait of male alienation and trauma. Andy, Dave and David discuss how the film seems to reveal new layers on every viewing, yet somehow becomes more puzzling at the same time. Naturally, the big question is whether Kill List belongs in the folk horror canon. Despite its modern setting and lack of traditional folk horror imagery, the hosts ultimately conclude that…

People in this episode

Hosts: Andrew Davidson, Dave Houghton, David Hall

Topics covered

• film analysis
• horror genre
• ritualistic themes
• male alienation
• British cinema

Keywords

• Kill List
• Ben Wheatley
• horror film
• ritual sacrifice
• folk horror
• British cinema
• male trauma

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Kill List

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