The Killing of a Sacred Deer

2017
R
2h 1m

IMDb RATING

7.0/10

197K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

440

Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, and Barry Keoghan in The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017)

Trailer for The Killing of a Sacred Deer

Play trailer1:57

5 Videos

99+ Photos

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

197K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

440

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

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 7 wins & 53 nominations

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)

Photos355

+ 349

More like this

7.1

7.5

7.1

7.1

7.4

7.3

6.3

7.0

6.9

6.1

6.3

6.9

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

10/10

An outstanding film that I'll never want to see again

Yorgos Lanthimos's latest film, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, is well-shot, adeptly acted, intensely written, and beautifully unsettling. An outstanding achievement by any metric. And I never want to see it again.

From the opening shot, the film wears its tone not only on its sleeve, but also on its chest, face, and everywhere else: Its gonna make you uncomfortable. From the haunting score that seems to creep its way into every scene, to the awkward and robotic characters, to the downright scary Martin (played excellently by Barry Keoghan), the movie feels 'off.' We've seen this "seemingly perfect upper- class family has a darkness that tears them apart" type story before, but never so viscerally displayed as it is here.

If the characters' inhuman mannerisms, conversations, and actions aren't unsettling enough, the film also delivers enough on-screen gross outs to hammer home a truly affecting experience. The film is objectively well-shot, and delivers a capable, if slightly subdued plot, while building to a frightening conclusion. It's not a horror movie sort of frightening either, but more of a, "I can't believe I'm about to watch this" feeling.

I know that's a tough sell. The Killing of a sacred Deer is not going to make you feel good. The film is filled with an overarching, all-consuming darkness that lingers even after it's over. Still, it's a truly unique and deeply affecting film that's worth watching, even if only once.