The Devil All the Time (2020)

Review

138min

Genre:     Crime, Drama, Thriller

Director:   Antonio Campos

Cast:       Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Bill Skarsgård…and more

Writers:   Antonio Campos, Paulo Campos and Donald Ray Pollock

-Synopsis-

In the churches and backwoods of god-fearing, post-war small town Ohio and West Virginia, the lives and ill deeds of corrupt and nefarious locals intersect with a young man trying to exorcise the demons of the past and protect what’s left of his family, bringing a righteous reckoning and brutal balance to a sinning and bible-thumping American heartland.

Given a filmography which includes dark indie dramas like ‘Afterschool’, ‘Martha Marcy May Marlene’ and ‘Simon Killer’, and a clear penchant for exposing the sinister underbelly of middle America, it’s no surprise that director/producer Antonio Campos would be drawn to Donald Ray Pollock’s 2011 “Hillbilly Gothic” novel and the chance to explore the dark recesses of the human condition through a period lens. And with ‘The Devil All the Time’ the New York filmmaker jumps at the chance to tackle the legacy of war and the effect of trauma on the working-class US family, while trying to wade through the murky waters of the complex and often contradictory morality of the American Bible Belt—all through the prism of very flawed and easily-tempted individuals.

Tom Holland stars as young Ohioan ‘Arvin Russell’, raised with his step-sister ‘Lenora’ (Eliza Scanlen) by their grandmother in West Virginia after the untimely death of his mother ‘Charlotte’ (Haley Bennett) and troubled war veteran dad ‘Willard’ (Bill Skarsgård) during his childhood. But his teenage struggles take a fateful turn when arrogant young new preacher ‘Preston Teagardin’ (Robert Pattinson) arrives in town and tragedy strikes close to home, as Arvin’s path takes him between the two neighbouring states and his fortunes intersect with those of nefarious drifters ‘Carl’ (Jason Clarke) and ‘Sandy’ (Riley Keough), and corrupt local sheriff ‘Lee Bodecker’ (Sebastian Stan)—with dire consequences for everyone.

If you’re a cinephile and the film feels familiar it’s probably because ‘The Devil All the Time’ is built on the DNA of decades of cinema set around the struggling working-class folk of the American south and heartland, as it evolved (or didn’t) through the years. And here Campos blends the tone, style, themes, settings, and mood of Terrence Malick’s ‘Badlands’ with more recent fare like ‘Mudbound’, ‘Lawless’, ‘Nocturnal Creatures’, ‘There Will Be Blood’, ‘Wildlife’, and ‘The Place Beyond the Pines’, using it all as an atmospheric background for the ideas of self-serving morality, the legacy of trauma and family, and of course revenge.

At a first (and perhaps second) glance the most notable thing about the film is the impressive group of emerging talent it gathers to it, as Campos wrangles together an international cast which blends box office stars with indie favourites, and a few who bridge the gap effortlessly. Almost all of whom deliver entirely convincing working-class southern and heartland accents often from the unlikeliest of non-American mouths; including a Swede, a trio of Aussies and a collection of Brits—such is the global nature of Hollywood these days.

Everyone involved is on form here, with the likes of Bill Skarsgård and Eliza Scanlen leading the supporting cast with central roles which further underline the talents fuelling their emerging careers, while Robert Pattinson continues his impressive schedule-testing run of scene-stealing indie supporting roles as a deviously high-pitched but softly-spoken antagonist, who will test the moral compass of even his most ardent fans. However the always excellent Jason Clarke alongside Riley Keough as the film’s wannabe ‘Bonnie & Clyde’ antagonists, and his fellow Aussie Mia Wasikowska are disappointingly underused, while several other supporting turns are solid but unspectacular.

The focus in terms of the performances will inevitably be on the central role of this ensemble piece played by young English Spider-Man himself Tom Holland, and rightfully so, as the young Brit gets the chance to expand the dramatic chops we only glimpsed in brief supporting roles in films like ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ and ‘The Lost City of Z’, spreading his wings beyond the confines of comic-book blockbuster fare to admirable effect.

In a concerted effort to make the film look and feel the part, Campos relies on impeccable production designs to re-create the US of the mid-40s through the mid-60s, although given the nature of small town America there is little need for a drastic style evolution through those years. And the heat of Alabama where it was filmed helps to create a stifling atmosphere which radiates through the screen, while also seamlessly standing in for the real and fictional Ohio and West Virginia backwoods and towns where the story is set—all captured in warm dusky tones by cinematographer Lol Crawley.

Then there’s the soothing narration with echoes of ‘The Big Lebowski’ to further set the mood, a rather fitting Appalachian drawl which comes from none other than the mouth of Donald Ray Pollock himself, the author of the novel on which the film is based, who strings together the pieces of this non-linear puzzle of a story which jumps back and forth through time.

But it’s that very story, its characters and the narrative as a whole, or at least its adaptation for the screen, which ultimately squanders a promising premise and lets the film down. Apart from Holland’s main protagonist and to a lesser extent Skarsgård as his father there is little effort to illuminate the psyche of the characters, or provide any development, particularly for the nefarious antagonists. Perhaps it’s a concerted biblical effort to let the troubled but ‘good’ characters navigate a world of evil-just-because, or maybe it’s just a symptom of the film’s underwritten nature, but there’s a lot missing behind the glassy eyes of something that postures as an insightful human drama.

The film seems stuck in a morally ambiguous limbo between being a meditation on the legacy of tragedy, callousness and neglect (particularly with children), and being a righteous and uncompromising fire & brimstone sermon about pushing back against the kind of people who tarnish the world—the “no-good sons of bitches”, the ones who fight the devil within all the time . . . and those who just let him win. But in the end it has little to say about the complex interpersonal themes and existential questions it sets up.

And for all the talk of the film’s grim, nihilistic and graphic qualities—an observation no doubt coloured by the expectations related to some of its family-friendly stars and the profile of many a Netflix viewer—‘The Devil All the Time’ is actually rather tame compared with much of the indie and international fare out there, and it could have done with a bit more daring grit in our opinion.

The Bottom Line…

A valiant effort at a brooding “Hillbilly Gothic” crime drama which looks the part and sets a tense tone but doesn’t quite work as a whole, never really hitting the mark or adequately illuminating the dark regions of the human condition, but just about managing to work as a moody character drama thanks to its performances, and despite the limitations of the narrative.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Mudbound (2017)

Two disparate families are forced together by their shared misfortunes on a muddy Mississppi farm and the two young men who return home from their service in the second world war, only to struggle with adjusting to civilian life and the glaring injustices of the American south—in a racially charged period drama brought to you by Netflix.

Directed by Dee Rees and starring Garrett Hedlund, Jason Mitchell and Carey Mulligan among others.

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