The Devil All the Time

From some of the reviews I read going into this movie, I wasn’t sure how good it would be and I wasn’t sure what it was even about, but holy shit this movie delivers everything I like in a film. For a little background on this review, one of my favorite movies ever is The Place Beyond the Pines and this movie borrows a lot from that while still being original. This movie deals with religious fanaticism, the impact of tragedy, how one moment in your life as a child can shape you and make you the person you are to become, the importance of loved ones and what you would sacrifice for them. The Devil All the Time takes all of this and gives us, in my opinion, one of the best movies I’ve seen in awhile and the best that’s come out this year, with I’m Thinking of Ending Things being second (also what’s up with the long titles now a days?) Tom Holland is so much more than Spider-Man and he proves that here. He gives his best performance to date. I genuinely care about Arvin in this movie, he's an easy character to like with everything he’s been through and how he carries himself. You want him to be okay in the end. Robert Pattinson kills every role he’s in nowadays. He’s so good in this, he doesn’t have a lot of screen time but his actions in the movie are literally the setup of the entire climax. And these two together? Electric fucking city. They could power New York in the church scene (no spoilers) like WOW what a fucking great scene. And can we talk about Bill Skarsgård for a minute? He’s always great I feel like. Whether he’s in full clown makeup or not, he always plays his roles to a TEE. Just incredible performances all around in this. This is such a brutal film, emotionally and with some seriously fucking graphic imagery. I’ve seen some people say it’s too much but that’s life sometimes. It’s brutal but you roll with it. I think this movie is so good in my eyes because I grew up in a very small town and I’ve heard and seen first hand some of the corruption and terrible shit that goes on in these little quaint towns. Does this movie overplay some of it? Of course, it’s a movie. But, some of it is fairly accurate to second hand accounts that I’ve heard. Plus, the added religious fanaticism, the fucking hymn they sing in the first act floods me with memories of church every Sunday and having hell, fire and brimstone drilled into my skull if I don’t dedicate my life to Jesus Christ. This review isn’t about my upbringing, I’m sorry but what I’m getting at is I can relate to a lot of the stuff I saw on screen here. Is this movie 100% perfect? No. But is it everything I like in a film: brutality, slow burn of a plot, relatable characters that stick with me for awhile and cigarettes being smoked? Yes. I absolutely fucking love this movie, please give it a shot. Don’t be scared off by the critics scores, just enjoy Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson and Bill Skarsgård being good ole Christian country boys back in the 60s and you will be pleasantly surprised. I will be watching this again very soon, maybe as soon as tomorrow. *“Washed in the blood of the lamb.” *ITS STUCK IN MY HEAD I NEED TO REPENT.