Gareth Crook This is the kind of bleak film that can only be made in Britain. In the way that Scandinavian cinema gives us desaturated cinematic vistas, Britain thrives on kitchen sink drama and folklore, here mixed with a dark uneasy humour and graphic violence. It's the way it's put together though, with a subtle roughness, an honesty, all the unrequited shine buffed out. Anything called Kill List, you know is not gonna end well, but it's how you get there and the chemistry between all the cast is thick, deep, dirty, to the point that it gets to you as it builds and unravels. I really wasn't taken to start with, the first act left me cold, the vile characters had me struggling to find any attachment and the mundanity of it all left a troubling unease in my bones. It's scarily simple, ordinary, familiar, but it's not an easy watch by a long stretch, in fact there's scenes here amongst some of the most brutal I've ever seen anywhere. Neil Maskell (brilliant in Utopia) plays a killer, one with a vigilante inner voice, whilst trying to be a family man. He plays quiet catatonic calm and untethered psychotic equally well, as his two worlds collide. It's disturbing and increasingly disorientating, as the bleak mundane makes way for the creeping psychosis. It's not a film I can say I enjoyed or even liked, but for a dark, tense and twisted, violent thriller, it hits the bloody mark square between the eyes and in the final act takes an unexpected twist that will stay with me for some time.8/10

Brakathor The fact is, this film is about nothing; it's as simple as that. In and of itself that's not the problem. Plenty of films are completely surreal or don't have a pointed subject and are AMAZING. Basically, for most of the first half, the film plays out as a typical linear crime drama based mainly around two criminal accomplices. The end result is we're left with an open ending because we're not really given much of the backstory, and virtually no backdoor scenes that would give us real insight into the nature and motives of the group who hire the criminal duo to commit a series of murders for them.The issue I have with films like this is, despite being about nothing, they're based around a STORY that is about something. In other words, every linear film is based within a certain time frame, be it a few days or a few years. What a typical linear film does is it selects moments that are relevant to the story within that specific time frame, and compiles them into an hour+ product designed specifically to convey the story to the viewer. Films like this purposely try to do that EXTREMELY badly.Essentially, within the time frame of the story that this film is based around, there IS a clear and definite answer to the many unanswered questions that the viewer is left with by the end of the film... but we're not shown it. Why? Because it's GENIUS not to show it... Right? "Wow... This film is so deep and atmospheric." No... It just left out two or three key scenes that made you think too hard about things that can ONLY be interpreted to have meaning in a way that's entirely subjective, and the amount of effort you spent thinking about those things made them appear larger than they actually are, so as to give the illusion of high-brow sophistication, when really the film explores nothing all that thought-provoking.Is it possible to create a "good" film based almost entirely around atmosphere and intrigue alone? The answer to that question I will concede is entirely subjective, hence the generous rating I've given it. To me however, films like this NEVER don't feel like a practical joke played upon the viewer by a director who has no interest whatsoever in conveying a story: "Haha! Gotcha! You thought this movie was going to go somewhere but it wasn't! It's about ABSOLUTELY nothing and I just made you waste 90 minutes of your life!" And for that reason, one thing I won't concede, is that films like this can EVER be considered "great."

The Couchpotatoes Apart of the ending that left me with some questions I thought Kill List was an entertaining movie. I would have scored it slightly more if it was not for the ending. The ending is okay though, it's just that I like clear endings. What starts as a slow movie where you wonder how this will turn into horror or a thriller will end in a pool of violence. The plot is well written with a good amount of violence. Once the hit-man played by Neil Maskell starts his killing spree there is no stop to it. It's quite violent and graphic and that makes the movie even better. The more moderate hit-man played by Michael Smiley tries to control the anger of the other hit-man but it's a lost battle. What follows is a good violent story with enough twists to keep you interested.

El-Kapitoshka Why do all the bad reviewers need answers? Let go. You're not entitled to an explanation just by looking at art. I remember watching this film with a good friend in 2011. We sat there fixated on the screen, enjoying the tight and seemingly ad libbed style and natural rapport between the actors. As it went on, we knew we were in for something a bit special. Gritty, dark and sometimes very violent Kill List managed to keep me thinking about the gobsmacking ending for days afterwards - in short the sign of a great movie for me. It was the first film to ever literally see both me and my friend look at each other, wordless and mouths open when the credits started to roll. But do yourself a favour, clear your mind of all the reviews you have read. Open your mind and enjoy. They don't make many like this roller coaster!