The Kill Hole

Last updated
The Kill Hole
The Kill Hole poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMischa S. Webley
Written byMischa S. Webley
Produced byJonny Gillette
Zach Hagen
Starring Chadwick Boseman
Tory Kittles
Dennis Adkins
Victoria Blake
Ted Rooney
Peter Greene
Billy Zane
CinematographyEric Billman
Edited byJames Westby
Music byJason Wells
Production
company
Alternate Ending Studios
Distributed byAlternate Ending Studios
Release dates
  • August 28, 2012 (2012-08-28)(Columbia Gorge International Film Festival)
  • March 15, 2013 (2013-03-15)(United States)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Kill Hole is a 2012 American action thriller war film written and directed by Mischa S. Webley and starring Chadwick Boseman, Tory Kittles, Dennis Adkins, Victoria Blake, Ted Rooney with Peter Greene and Billy Zane. [1] It is Webley's directorial debut. [2] [3]

Contents

Plot

The shadow of war follows a troubled Iraq War vet as he is forced to pursue one of his own into the Pacific Northwest wilderness to finally confront a war crime that has haunted them both. Lt. Samuel Drake is a troubled vet plagued by his actions while deployed in Iraq. Recently discharged, he is trying to piece his life back together while he works as a cab driver and lives in a rundown motel room. He also attends counseling sessions led by Marshall to help cope with the horrors of his past. While on this path to a fresh start, Drake's fragile new life is shattered when two executives, who represent a private military contractor, present a new mission, one with no option to refuse; track down and kill Sgt. Devin Carter, an AWOL Marine Corps. sniper who knows the truth about Drake's past and who himself is on a mission to target and kill members of the mercenary firm. A gripping, lyrical meditation on war and the scars it leaves on those who fight, The Kill Hole is a story of one man who is forced to face his violent past, and the uneasy bond he forms with the mysterious assassin he must confront in his quest for redemption.

Cast

Reception

The film has a 25% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. [4]

Dennis Harvey of Variety gave the film a negative review, calling it "a middling drama that tries to combine elements of Rambo with serious treatment of soldiers’ post-traumatic stress disorder and vague political commentary.” [1]

Omer M. Mozaffar of RogerEbert.com gave the film a positive review and wrote, "Its director and producer Zach Hagen is congenial and it is a very good movie. It keeps leading you in one direction, in order to sneak up on you in the other." [2]

Mark Olsen of the Los Angeles Times gave the film a negative review and wrote, "Made up of four or five story ideas all crammed together, the film maintains a stop-start momentum at best that keeps it from ever hitting a solid stride." [5]

Neil Genzlinger of The New York Times gave the film a negative review, calling it, "an unconvincing, sometimes unfathomable tale about a brooding veteran (Chadwick Boseman) who was involved in a vaguely defined atrocity while fighting overseas." [6]

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References

  1. 1 2 Harvey, Dennis (14 March 2013). "Film Review: 'The Kill Hole'". Variety . Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  2. 1 2 Mozaffar, Omer M. (23 December 2012). "The Kill Hole: An adventure about remorse". RogerEbert.com . Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  3. ↑ Gardner, Chris (September 3, 2020). "'The Kill Hole' Director Recalls Casting Chadwick Boseman Before His Meteoric Rise". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  4. ↑ "The Kill Hole". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  5. ↑ Olsen, Mark (March 21, 2013). "Review: 'Kill Hole' a muddled thriller about war veterans". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  6. ↑ Genzlinger, Neil (March 14, 2013). "A Troubled Veteran Meets a New Enemy". The New York Times. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
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