The Killing of a Sacred Deer

2017
R
2h 1m

IMDb RATING

7.0/10

199K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

Play trailer1:57

Suspense Mystery Drama Horror Mystery Thriller

Steven, a charismatic surgeon, is forced to make an unthinkable sacrifice after his life starts to fall apart, when the behavior of a teenage boy he has taken under his wing turns sinister.Steven, a charismatic surgeon, is forced to make an unthinkable sacrifice after his life starts to fall apart, when the behavior of a teenage boy he has taken under his wing turns sinister.Steven, a charismatic surgeon, is forced to make an unthinkable sacrifice after his life starts to fall apart, when the behavior of a teenage boy he has taken under his wing turns sinister.

Director
- Yorgos Lanthimos
Writers
- Yorgos Lanthimos
- Efthimis Filippou
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.0/10

199K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

614

116

Director
- Yorgos Lanthimos
Writers
- Yorgos Lanthimos
- Efthimis Filippou
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 7 wins & 53 nominations total

Videos5

Trailer 1:57

The Killing of a Sacred Deer

Trailer 1:10

"Playdate" Trailer

A Guide to the Films of Yorgos Lanthimos

Clip 1:56

The Killing Of A Sacred Deer: You'd make a great couple (French Subtitled)

Photos356

+ 350

More like this

7.1

7.1

7.5

7.1

7.4

7.8

6.5

7.3

7.0

7.0

7.6

7.7

The Banshees of Inisherin

Storyline

Edit

Did you know

Edit

Trivia
Heart surgery scenes in the film are real. They were filmed during an operation on a real patient who was undergoing quadruple bypass surgery which Colin Farrell attended.

Goofs
After bringing lemonade to the children in the hospital, Martin admits to Steven that he is the cause of the children's health problems. Any reasonably intelligent person would immediately have the lemonade tested for poison. Steven, the brilliant cardiac surgeon, does not do that.

Quotes
Martin: You know, not long after my dad died, someone told me that I eat spaghetti the exact same way he did. They said what an extraordinary impression this fact had made on them. Look at the boy, look how he eats spaghetti. Exactly the same way his father did. He sticks his fork in. He twirls it around, around, around, around, around. Then he sticks it in his mouth. At that time, I thought I was the only one who ate spaghetti that way. Me and my dad. Later, of course, I found out that everyone eats spaghetti the exact same way. Exact same way, exact same way. This made me very upset. Very upset. Maybe even, um, more upset than when they told me he was dead. My dad.
Martin: I don't know if what is happening is fair, but it's the only thing I can think of that's close to justice.

Connections
Featured in The Graham Norton Show: Jane Fonda/Nicole Kidman/Colin Farrell/Bryan Cranston/Matt Lucas/Niall Horan (2017)

Soundtracks
Stabat Mater D383: I. Jesus Christus schwebt am Kreuzel (Chor)
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Michel Corboz
Licensed courtesy of Warner Music UK Ltd

User reviews1.2K

Review

Featured review

7/10

Perfectly Bizarre for good reasons.

It's not "weird" just to be weird, It's trying to show us something discomforting, that conventional movies CAN'T.

While The Killing Of a Sacred Deer will be dismissed by the mainstream, for it's very unconventional acting, pacing, and plot, for other's it offers a discomforting conversation on the dark reality of nature and justice. You aren't supposed to ENJOY it, you are supposed to appreciate it.

The intentionally cold and flat reactions from it's characters will turn many off, but give insight into empathy and trust. The subtraction and skewing of emotion allows us to get a closer look at ourselves and our expectations for coping with threats and loss. It's maddening and incredibly uncomfortable to watch, but that is it's aim and success. You have to stop wanting the movie to be what you want it to be, and start wondering why it is the way it is, if you want to take something away from it.

While the movie doesn't meet it's impact potential by missing some opportunities for heavier moments and more character development, it is still fascinating, challenging, and rewarding for an open mind.

For people that appreciate brain teasers like 2001: A Space Odyssey, Mulholland Drive, Borgman, Under The Skin, and Sleeping Beauty.