9) Devil’s Knot
Thank you, Atom Egoyan, for reminding us that just because a movie deals with a serious subject and is toplined by sturdy actors, that doesn’t mean it can’t completely suck. Case in point: Devil’s Knot, the director’s examination of the West Memphis Three murder case, is one of the year’s most unnecessary and despicably tasteless films.
What reason, outside of maybe a financial one, was there to return to West Memphis and dramatize the horrific murders of three young boys? Devil’s Knot tells us absolutely nothing we didn’t already know from the infinitely superior quartet of documentaries that covered the case and trials. It doesn’t succeed as a brooding, sinister mystery. It doesn’t even hold your attention. So what gives?
Devil’s Knot is a film I never expected to hate. But the more I think about it, the angrier I get. Why would Egoyan make us slog through such abject misery to teach us absolutely nothing? We’ve already sat through four excellent and deeply upsetting films about the vile crime at the heart of Devil’s Knot. There was no need for one more. Egoyan’s movie is melodramatic, muted and occasionally manipulative. At its best, Devil’s Knot is a depressing bore. At its worst, it’s exploitative trash.
Published: Dec 22, 2014 10:57 am