The Killing of the Sacred Deer

The life of a surgeon is thrown into disarray when his unusual friendship with a teenage boy takes a dark turn.

"The Killing of a Sacred Deer" is absurd for the sake of absurdity, heavily testing your patience when the ridiculousness of it all becomes too much. For the most part, the deadpan humour and intrigue is satisfying, as we try to make sense of the odd relationships at play. Once the key plot point is revealed however, the film takes a sinister turn, and the outlandish actions of the characters become even more difficult to connect with. Loud orchestral chords mark the moments for you to wake-up, otherwise there is very little of the stale story to entertain or appreciate. Nothing sacred.

MIFF 2017
125 mins