They Will Kill You Review: Zazie Beetz Slays In A Stylish But Empty Horror Action Comedy

In a secure, opulent building from which there is no easy escape, a young woman furiously and violently battles her way through a series of privileged people who've pledged to sacrifice her life to the Dark Lord himself. It seems that these people, thanks to selling their souls to the Prince of Darkness, belong to a Satanic cult that demands they must slaughter innocents from time to time in order to retain their wealth and status. Unfortunately for them, the young woman is extremely physically capable, with a killer survival instinct. She also has the assistance of her younger sister, someone she was estranged from for years but has now reunited with. The sisterly bond between the two women turns out to be no match for the filthy rich.

But enough about "Ready or Not 2: Here I Come." We're here to discuss "They Will Kill You." Yes, there's no getting around the fact that "They Will Kill You," the debut Stateside feature from Russian filmmaker Kirill Sokolov, closely resembles the Radio Silence sequel. Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema certainly aren't doing the movie any favors in this department by releasing the film in theaters a mere week after the "Ready or Not" sequel. 

As such, the destiny of the movie seems like a fait accompli; it's too derivative for horror fans and cinephiles while not being unique enough for general audiences. It's true that the film deserves some of that flack, because it sadly never finds much to say beyond a surface level. Yet that surface is really pretty and enjoyable, so much so that I'd say if "Ready or Not" is already your brand of horror comedy, you should still check "They Will Kill You" out, as it has a lot going for it.

In addition to the dual plot summary detailed above, "They Will Kill You" specifically concerns Asia Reaves (Zazie Beetz), who impulsively abandons her younger sister Maria (Myha'la), leaving the girl in the clutches of their abusive father. A decade later, Asia, fresh out of prison, has tracked Maria to the Virgil, a swanky and exclusive apartment complex in NYC. Welcomed in as one of the new housekeepers by the superintendent, Lilith (Patricia Arquette), Asia is immediately preyed upon by a group of tenants in creepy pig masks, including Kevin (Tom Felton) and Sharon (Heather Graham). However, it turns out the Satanic cultists are in for a surprise, as Asia has arrived with an arsenal of weapons in her luggage (including a samurai sword) and a raging bloodlust. Unfortunately for Asia, the Virgil also contains some unforeseen obstacles that she'll have to contend with.

Beginning with that reveal of Asia not being a damsel in distress, "They Will Kill You" adopts a charmingly unpretentious rhythm, opting to skip straight to the good stuff rather than play some sort of waiting game. This is doubly pleasing considering how good the good stuff is; Kirill Sokolov stages some beautifully brutal fight sequences peppered with gnarly kills. Although "Ready or Not" may or may not have been a direct influence, the film wears a plethora of other inspirations on its bloodied sleeve. In addition to the likes of Quentin Tarantino and Sam Raimi, there are Sergio Leone close-ups, Japanese chambara-style blood sprays, Brian Yuzna-esque animated body parts, and more. It's another genre movie that revels in genre movie history, yet Sokolov doesn't seem to be looking for validation for his cinematic tastes. Instead, he appears to be having fun throwing everything into the stew, and it's easy to be delighted by that.

Of course, there is a flip side to the movie being so stylishly fun, and it's that there's just not a lot of substance beneath the surface. This isn't to say that writers Kirill Sokolov and Alex Litvak don't bother to try to give their film a little depth. Certainly, Zazie Beetz and Myha'la ground their characters, their pasts, and their relationship to one another in fine, affecting fashion, making them the most compelling people in the film. Heather Graham and Tom Felton give a couple quirks to their roles which make them pop (Graham in particular is a hoot in the film), and there are some colors to Patricia Arquette's Lilith that afford her some intrigue.

But it's all too clear that Sokolov and company just aren't terribly interested in this material. The class warfare subtext feels cribbed from a bunch of other films, the commentary on racism (the housekeepers are generally all people of color; the tenants are mostly all Caucasian) is a purely visual one, and the world-building is half-baked. To wit, while some characters refer to the Virgil not as a hedonistic paradise but as a "prison," it's never explicitly explained whether the cultists are confined to the Virgil or just have to return there periodically to make sacrifices. The concept of each floor representing a theme from Dante's "Inferno" is clever, making the movie feel akin to "The Raid" meets "Snowpiercer." Yet each floor is barely explored, used mostly as background for more fight scenes. The escalation in the film isn't a narrative or even emotional one, but is instead more like a video game. There's a very cool boss battle-style climax, but it's a shame it couldn't have more behind it than the visuals.

"They Will Kill You" is the platonic ideal of an "empty calories" movie. Cinematographer Isaac Bauman joins Kirill Sokolov in making the film a visual feast, and Sokolov appears to have the same ear for music as his fellow Russian genre enthusiast Ilya Naishuller. The needle drops come fast and furious in the film, and include the likes of Dead Man's Bones, aka Ryan Gosling's spooky indie project. All of this makes "They Will Kill You" a fun popcorn flick, and one wonders if this is what producers Andy and Barbara Muschietti are going for with their new production company, Nocturna.

Although much of the pleasures of "They Will Kill You" come with the caveat that the movie doesn't quite lead anywhere memorable, one aspect that is fully fantastic and very memorable is Zazie Beetz. She tears into her first lead in an action horror comedy, something which should've happened much sooner after her turn in "Deadpool 2." Beetz' physical prowess and comedic timing go hand in hand, and she follows the script's lead by taking Asia out of the Final Girl archetype and putting her into a full-blown heroine category. She also really seems to get the appeal of Sokolov's homages; I'm hard-pressed to think of another scene from the last several years that's as gleeful in its classic exploitation flick appeal as Asia taking apart a room full of people with a katana while dressed in a t-shirt and underwear. Who knows if "They Will Kill You" will make a killing at the box office or not, but I hope it'll carry Sokolov to an even better script, as well as propel Beetz to another action lead. They're ones to keep our eyeballs on.

/Film Rating: 6.5 out of 10

"They Will Kill You" opens in theaters on March 27, 2026.