A Dark and Disturbing Trip into Hell
Summary
God is a Bullet isn’t exactly a fun time but if you are looking for something dark and disturbing with excellent performances and some of the most brutal kills you’ll see this year then check it out.
Plot: When vice detective Bob Hightower finds his ex-wife murdered and daughter kidnapped by a satanic cult – Bob is frustrated by bumbling botched official investigations. Bob quits the police force, gets tattoos, and infiltrates the cult to hunt down the charismatic cult leader, Cyrus, with the help of the cult’s only female victim escapee, the brilliantly damaged, Case Hardin. Bob is lead down the rabbit hole to save his daughter and Case seizes the opportunity to claim back her power from the cult that took so much away from her.
Review: The fact that God is a Bullet is apparently inspired by true events is what makes it even more disturbing and let me assure you this is a nasty film; in the first ten minutes someone is raped and the movie contains regular scenes of graphic violence with women being badly beaten and the whole thing will leave a bad taste in your mouth. So, it’s not exactly a “fun” movie but is it a bad one? Absolutely not.
Directed by Nick Cassavetes God is a Bullet is a 2 and a half hour descent into Hell with faultless performances from the cast. Nikolaj Coster-Waldau seems to be attracted to these kinds of darker roles and this would be a good (if grim) double bill with Shot Caller. He plays Detective Bob Hightower who attempts to infiltrate a cult after his daughter is kidnapped with the help of ex-cult member Case Hardin (an incredible Maika Monroe).
The villains are just irredeemably evil with Karl Glusman particularly despicable as Cyrus and the way each of them look covered in Satanic tattoos just makes them even creepier.
As stated this movie is 2 and half hours long and it feels it; there isn’t that much action in it until the finale but it’s worth the build up as faces are blown off and things explode. It’s funny how violence can be cartoonish in some films and in others it can be truly shocking and this is one of those movies that goes for shock. The story is dark and it’s a tough film to sit through but I still couldn’t turn away as I had to see how it would all play out.
Overall, God is a Bullet isn’t the kind of movie I would watch often due to its disturbing nature but the performances are first rate and there is enough action in the finale to be worth the long runtime.
