While it won’t be for everyone, They Will Kill You is a film that definitely knows what kind of story it wants to tell. Keep reading to find out more.
They Will Kill You is one of those movies that piqued my interest from the moment I saw the trailer for it. The premise is that a young woman, Asia Reaves, (Zazie Beetz) arrives in New York City for a job at The Virgil, one of the most exclusive high-rises around.
They Will Kill You
Directed by: Kirill Sokolov
Starring: Zazie Beetz, Myha’la, Paterson Joseph, Tom Felton, Heather Graham, Patricia Arquette
Release Date: March 27, 2026
Asia is there ostensibly to work as a maid, but it quickly becomes obvious that nothing is as it seems in this building, least of all with Asia herself. Asia, we quickly learn, is a woman on a mission and not even the Devil himself will stop her if she has anything to say about it.
This film is a bit of an oddball in that it combines action, comedy and horror into a single film. That is a tricky combination of genres because if you don’t get it just right, the results can be abysmal (i.e last year’s Death of a Unicorn). They Will Kill You, for the most part, strikes a good balance, especially during the many fight sequences scattered throughout the film.
Zazie Beetz’s performance as Asia Reaves is by far the greatest thing about this film. She flips the switch from damsel in distress to “I am a mighty warrior and I will END you!” so quickly I sat up with immediate interest. She fills this role with such a fiery passion that it’s easy to cheer as she fights her way through the building’s inhabitants.
Early on, I was admittedly worried that this was going to be one of those movies that is all action with no real exposition, but once the film gets going, the director lays out a fairly straightforward, if over the top, tale. This story has a little bit of everything: vengeance, the occult, family issues, and a lot of bloody violence. If there’s one thing that’s going to turn some viewers off, it’s the amount of blood and violence present in this story. It is a lot to take in, but the eventual payoff is quite satisfying.
Another highlight of this film is the incredible soundtrack by Carlos Rafael Rivera. Honestly, this music is nearly half of the reason I liked the movie as much as I did. There are some powerful musical themes scattered throughout the film, especially in the final act when Asia comes face to face with the management behind The Virgil. The composer used these deep, resonant chords that lend these scenes a sense of gravitas that might have been lacking otherwise.
What I’m trying to say is, I can appreciate a film that fully embraces its premise and They Will Kill You does that in spades. So often I’ve said of a film that “I wish they would’ve done more, pushed more, etc.” But with this film, I can tell, they didn’t hold anything back and the end result is very entertaining. I’m not sure how well the story will hold up on a second viewing, but for a night out…it’s not a bad way to spend 90 minutes.
If you get the chance to see this in theaters, please do so, you might be surprised with how much you like it.
