The Devil's Business (2011)

At the house of their target, two hit men bide their time waiting for the kill, only to find death already arrived in the shape of black magic, devilish spirits and the occult.

Director:

Sean Hogan

Writer:

Sean Hogan

Stars:

Billy Clarke, Jack Gordon, Jonathan Hansler

Cast

Credited cast:
Billy Clarke	...	Pinner
Jack Gordon	...	Cully
Jonathan Hansler	...	Kist
Harry Miller	...	Bruno
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mark Sealy	...	Homunculus

Storyline

At the house of their target, two hit men bide their time waiting for the kill, only to find death already arrived in the shape of black magic, devilish spirits and the occult.

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Plot Keywords:

occult | black magic | back from the dead | contract killing | child | 

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Taglines:

Go to Hell

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Genres:

Horror

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Released at the same time as another British film with a similar horrific premise, Kill List (2011).

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Connections

Featured in Everything Is Terrible! Presents: The Great Satan (2018)

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Soundtracks

My Enemies I Fear Not, But Protect Me From My Friends
Written by Justin Greaves
Performed by Crippled Black Phoenix
Courtesy of Invada Records
Published by Domino Publishing

User Reviews

Slow burning, intense and creepy gem of hit men and horror

A sure thing in cinema is rarely just that, especially in horror films. This is the case in The Devil's Business, in which veteran hit-man Mr. Pinner and his greenhorn associate Cully wait in the home of a target due to arrive later after attending an opera, Mr. Kist. It seems easy enough, but after the discovery of a devil worship altar in a shed things start to go pretty pear shaped and pretty soon the night is one of terror. I'm not usually drawn to horror films with criminal protagonists as the nature of their work immediately puts them at a remove from my natural sympathies. However writer/director Sean Hogan conducts things with great skill, drawing inspiration from theatre to make things instantly compelling. Pinter's The Dumb Waiter was apparently a source and the characters of Mr. Pinner and Cully come out and grow from their very first exchange of dialogue, on the one hand we have the old master, wise, cautious and with little time for any consideration other than making things go absolutely smoothly, and on the other the young man, the thug in training who tries to talk the talk but constantly reveals his inexperience. Billy Clarke is great as Mr Pinner, sharp, sarcastic and assured while Jack Gordon is equally good as Cully, clumsy, curious and eager he brings a naive likability to a role which in the wrong hands could grate. They share fine chemistry and so as events get out of control an impressive level of pathos emerges along with the suspense, one genuinely hopes these two will get away OK. Rounding things out Jonathan Hansler is suavely sinister as the classy Mr. Kist, while Harry Miller makes for a solid old school boss. The film makes good use of shadow and darkness, with good use of eerie blue twilight as well as rich red, and calm and controlled camera lets the actors and dialogue shine whilst milking the uneasy setting, a highlight scene involving Mr. Pinner recounting a scary story as the camera moves slowly on his increasingly strained face, much like watching an intense monologue from the front row of a theatre. Some may find the dialogue a bit overwritten but I really appreciated it, I thought it great to see a film where the writing is so integral. Towards the end things do get a little out of control with traditional grue and madness that doesn't sit so well with what has gone before but on the other hand its still pretty unnerving and it does bring a certain needed release, without sacrificing too much power. Basically I thought this was pretty excellent, highly recommended if you can dig horror with a slow burning fuse and lots of talk.

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 August 2012 (UK)

Also Known As:

Coisas do Diabo

Company Credits

Production Co:

SHH Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

69 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1