The Devil All the Time
2020
*½
Director: Antonio Campos
Cast: Tom Holland, Bill Skarsgård, Riley Keough, Jason Clarke, Sebastian Stan, Haley Bennett, Eliza Scanlen, Mia Wasikowska, Robert Pattinson
In the decades following World War II, the lives of a handful of characters intersect in Ohio and West Virginia. These include a disturbed war veteran and his traumatised son, two duplicitous preachers, a corrupt sheriff, and husband and wife serial killers. This Southern Gothic drama is a right old mess. The confusing introduction of characters and the aimless rush through the decades are a clear giveaway that this is a literary adaptation. The dismal script by Antonio and Paulo Campos is based on a 2011 novel by Donald Ray Pollock, who himself occasionally provides unnecessary narration. The point of the story remains unclear. The events revolve around religion and violence, and it features nothing but miserable people, most of whom do not die of natural causes. While Tom Holland gives a believable performance as the troubled young man at the centre of events, Robert Pattinson is absolutely awful as the slimy and abusive preacher.
