One of the most anticipated movies of the year came out a few days ago. Like most mainstream films, I started off very skeptical. Popular movies tend to lack depth and have regurgitated story lines that have been seen many times before. However, I was pleasantly surprised by The Devil All The Time (2020). The movie is suspenseful, every moment leaves you on the edge of your seat wanting to find the glue to put the story’s puzzle pieces together. Let’s talk about it.
What a story!
I want to start off by mentioning that the genre of this film is not something that I normally watch. I was originally drawn to this film because of its all-star cast, but I stayed because the story sunk its teeth into me. Horror, love, revenge, and the battle between what is good and what is evil.
Much of the story is up for interpretation, many of the characters are not clearly “good” or “bad,” they are a bit of both. This balance beam walking act kept me engaged with the film for its entirety and almost made me forget to breath.
All of that being said, this film is a thriller, a mystery, and plays with your mind. There is death, heartbreak, and some themes that made me feel uneasy, but throughout the film, I focused a lot of my attention on the characters. While most films focus on plot, this film had a nice balance between the characters and plot, and how they carefully intertwine. For instance, Willard (Bill Skarsgard) has some slanted beliefs, but underneath it all, he seems to be a nice man. He loves his son, he loves his wife, and he loved his dog. But something about him is not right. Something about him cannot be trusted. So, what does that mean about Arvin?
There are very few definitive answers in this film. There are no super heroes. No ghosts. Just setting, plot, and characters. This is one of those films that I will be thinking about for weeks. Right after watching the film, I did not think that I liked it. It was weird. Strange. But now, a day later, I appreciate it’s intricacy and its attention to detail. I also acknowledge the great acting and directing. The screenwriting was also well done because I was never confused. I felt happy when I could put the clues together for myself and was not simply told plot points. Well done all around!
Something to think about:
Willard has this saying that is repeated throughout the film, “There’s a lot of no good sons of b***hes out there.” This saying made me think about how our psychology and inner dialogues affect our everyday lives, and thus, our lives as a whole. We tend to see what we think we will see. We tend to find what we think we will find.
In other words, if in the morning we think that we are going to have a good day, we will remember the instances in that day that are good. However, if we think we are going to have a bad day, we will remember the parts of the day that are bad. A single saying laid out the structure for Willard’s life and in some ways, Arvin’s life as well. If you think people are out to get you, you will find people who are. If you think people are kind, you will find people who are.
The way you look at the world changes how you experience it. I wonder how Willard’s life would have turned out if he had a different catch phrase.
Sentence Summary
When Spiderman comes back from Thanos’ snap, he finds himself surrounded by corruption and a gone-rogue Edward Cullen.
Now, onto the real sentence summary: Arvin’s family history is engraved in him and leads him down a path that his father started for him many years ago.
See ya!
Thank you for reading. You are awesome.
What did you think of this film? Did Tom Holland surprise you, or did you always know that he had the acting chops in him?
I knew that Tom was something special. His Spiderman is goofy and adds just the right vibe to the Marvel Universe.
However, some of the other actors in this film could work on their southern accent! Ahem. I think you know who I am talking about… not Pattinson, he was incredible, as usual.
Arianna
P.S. Let’s talk about Pattinson.
I wrote this post and realized that I did not even mention the brilliant Robert Pattinson. He can truly play any role. In this film, he plays a preacher who is entrancing. His character is despicable, but somehow he also has this magnetism to him.
I cannot think of an actor who is as versatile as Pattinson. What a brilliant artist. And a fellow weirdo. I appreciate that. But his character in this film was brainwashed and had no sound moral compass.
He played the character incredibly. Round of applause for him! But not for his character, because he was a d-bag.
Aloha Arianna 