Film Review: The Killing of a Sacred Deer

To watch a Yorgos Lanthimos film is to enter a world with its own unique - and frankly bizarre Ð logic. In his latest movie, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer, the world's unique rationale centres on ideas of justice and consequence.

When surgeon and family man Steve (Colin Farrell) is judged to have failed in his duty to protect life, he must make an unthinkable choice to make things right. At once absurd and terrifying, the psychological dread that surrounds Steven's decision-making process results in a deeply unnerving but often uproarious journey.

As the husband and father of two slowly accepts the terrible decision ahead of him, his fear and need for control emerges as cruelty and cowardice, lashing out at his increasingly vulnerable children.

Steven is emblematic of Lanthimos' social code, where a lack of shame surrounding sex, the body and sharing impolite opinions lead to a quick and quirky form of intimacy - which is often a source of surprising humour.

Sometimes his characters can be charmless, which makes Irish actor Barry Keoghan's performance revelatory. As the unlikely source of Steven's dilemma, Keoghan's character Martin is soft-spoken and sweet - making him all the more unnerving when he reveals his dark motivations. The film's eerily calm atmosphere is heightened by the still camerawork. Released just after Halloween, it's a trick-filled treat.

9/10
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