“The Devil All the Time,” adapted from the critically acclaimed novel of the same name by Donald Ray Pollock, is a violent, unflinching character study of the bizarre and compelling inhabitants of a small town in the Midwest. Written and directed by Antonio Campos, the film features an ensemble cast including Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Bill Skarsgård, Riley Keough, Jason Clarke and Sebastian Stan.
Set primarily in Knockemstiff, Ohio, the first part of the film takes a cue from the stylings of Christopher Nolan, unfolding its nonlinear narrative in various points between 1945-1957. It is here the film begins its exploration of one of its primary themes: religious fanaticism.
Portrayed by Skarsgård, World War II Marine Willard Russell returns from the war hoping to build a normal life away from the horrors of his past. He settles down with a waitress from Meade, Ohio named Charlotte Russell, played by Haley Bennett, and has a child named Arvin, played by Tom Holland. Skarsgård’s performance brings a slow-burning intensity, matching the suspenseful tone of the film and making Skarsgård compelling to watch.
However, Willard’s wartime experience left indelible scars on his psyche, stemming from an incident when his platoon came across a crucified and scalped sergeant on the Solomon Islands, which forced Willard to mercifully, and violently, end the sergeant’s suffering. This leads to the film’s most enduring image: a makeshift cross in the woods where Willard takes his young son to pray.
At the same time, Knockemstiff is visited by a pair of traveling preachers: the eccentric, animated Roy Laferty, played by Harry Melling, and his wheelchair-bound cousin Theodore. In contrast to Skarsgård’s quiet rage, Melling makes the most out of every moment of screentime, embodying the “ranting zealot” with reckless abandon. Laferty’s faith is as absolute as Willard’s, and he also finds himself married with a young child named Lenora.
While they are quite different men, the film deftly weaves together Willard’s and Laferty’s narratives through their fanatic devotion to their faith. When Willard’s wife Charlotte is diagnosed with incurable cancer, he and his son pray desperately for God to cure her, even going as far as to “sacrifice” the family dog. However, this act does nothing to prevent the inevitable, and Charlotte soon passes away.
After an injury results in him staying in a closet for two weeks, Laferty’s obsessive faith metastasizes into full-blown delusion, which leads to horrifying consequences for his young family. No matter how much devotion and commitment both of these men put into their faith, their ultimate rewards are tragic, violent ends.
This section also introduces us to the traveling, seemingly mild-mannered couple of Carl and Sandy Henderson, played by Clarke and Keough. The duo’s natural affability easily earns the trust of the hitchhikers they pick up, and masks their true homicidal tendencies. Like Willard and Laferty, Carl longs to feel God in his life, a desire that, as with the former two, is satisfied through violence.
For the rest of the film, Campos returns the story to a more linear progression, with the now teenage Arvin struggling to live a normal life with his grandparents and adopted sister Lenora, played by Eliza Scanlen, while coming to terms with the lingering trauma of his childhood.
Holland and Scanlen bring their characters, as well as their rapport, to life through their shared childhood tragedies, making the audience invested in their survival, even as the film’s bleak, almost nihilistic tone all but ensures that it is impossible.
Of course, even in a supportive role, Robert Pattinson completely steals the show as the manipulative Reverend Preston Teagardin, with an utterly surreal screen presence that almost renders all of the surrounding set and characters invisible whenever he speaks.
Campos’ direction creates a near constant sense of hopelessness and paranoia. He gives Knockemstiff a very distinctive identity. An old, run-down set design and the obscenity laden dialogue of the residents create the sense of a fallen, corrupt little town. The violence that is depicted in the film is not overly stylized. Rather than prolonged sequences of gore and screaming, the violence is instead disturbing and realistic, often occurring when the audience is least expecting it.
The film’s score, composed by Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans, delicately weaves calm and chaos.
Finally, the film pulls off a rare feat and makes great use of narration. While some segments of the film could benefit from some ambiguity and permission to speak for themselves, the classic Western voiceover, provided by the novel’s original author, Pollock himself, adds depth and authenticity to many of the scenes that leaves a far more enduring impact on the viewer.
“The Devil All the Time” presents a suspenseful, provocative, character-driven cautionary tale about the obsession of finding or assigning meaning in a random, chaotic world. The tragedies that this obsession can motivate is brought to life by the powerhouse performances of its ensemble cast.
Rating: 9/10 Hawks
