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There’s no denying that the film tries to achieve something lofty, combining an iconic folk tale, a grim contemporary sex trafficking storyline, and an element of the supernatural (the “devil” in the title? Yes, it’s literal).
The infamous legend of Robert Johnson, an actual blues artist who at midnight at a crossroads met the devil and sold his soul for supernatural guitar abilities, is the first tale this film spins. This is a legendary story and it sets the tone for what is to come.
Paul Wilson (Ben Gavin) is a former mercenary with a dark past who now leads a peaceful family life in rural Iowa. But when his wife and daughter are brutally assaulted by sex traffickers in Kansas City, his dormant instincts suddenly reemerge, and he attempts to locate them, no matter what the price even if it means selling his soul.
The story follows a profoundly mismatched film that bears a serious resemblance to the control taken. First and foremost, the protagonist, Paul, is not a hero. For starters, he is willing to do anything in his power to retrieve his daughter from captivity which is a rather morbid way to go about it. While it does contain a level of weight that is appropriate for most subjects, the movie does tend to swing into bizarre supernatural territory which, while being quite a cool idea, is a little bit challenging to mesh with the serious tone.
Paul’s old war buddy Randall (Robert Coppage) is not just a coincidence, it turns out he is also a descendant of Robert Johnson. As with all of the men from his family, he also inherited superpowers which were associated with their family’s link to Satan. With a family tree like that, it is no wonder why he has the supernatural ability to locate people.
Luckily, Randall happens to have a way of intervening. He possesses a gate to hell in the basement of KC’s famous Grinders restaurant. With his help, Paul could finally locate his daughter so he could negotiate with the devil (Kirk Fox) before rescuing his girl and attacking the trafficking compound.
As a resident of the KC region, I liked the feel of the film as I attempted to look for and recognize some spots and addresses, as well as street names that were mentioned. This is not one of those films that tries to feign Australia as New York the KC feel is here and it’s quite evident that a significant portion of the film was made here. However, the city which is shown in the film is a hub of sex trafficking, murder, tremendous corruption, and a literal gateway to hell. Not a very good look (or one that is particularly flattering, or so I like to think).
The overall vibe of the film is somewhere around poor and scattered, the one thing that I question myself is the message they are to trying convey. It appears to be torn whether Paul is a good father or a vile torturer and murderer (somewhere in between?), and is willing to raise a range of moral questions while showing no inclination to answer any of them. I appreciate the local people and places featured in this movie, but the movie itself, I did not enjoy very much.
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