The Devil to Pay
Bleak, dark drama has strong violence, blood, and gore.
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The Devil to Pay
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this movie.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that The Devil to Pay is a drama with moments of extreme violence, blood, and gore. This gritty tale is set in the Appalachian Mountains, where many people settled into their own communities, becoming self-sustaining and self-governing, living by their own set of laws and justice. But when a mother and her son are threatened by a powerful family, it's up to her to make sure they will be safe from persecution. There's a fair amount of gun violence, and many injuries people suffer are shown in detail. A few chase scenes imperil a woman on the run. A woman finds a man's severed hands on the top of the hood of a car. A woman with a crowbar beats a man until he's dead. A man has his face and head burned off with an acid-like liquid (not shown, but the aftermath is), and another man has the same acid-like liquid dripped onto his penis, and he screams in pain. Some brief male nudity (bare buttocks shown). Strong language includes infrequent use of "damn" and "hell." Some characters smoke cigarettes and cigarillos. A woman drinks a swig of alcohol from a flask.
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What's the Story?
In THE DEVIL TO PAY, a mother (Danielle Deadwyler) must protect her son from a dangerous family, led by a matriarch (Catherine Dyer), determined to kill them. But in a community that has its own laws, systems of justice, and retaliation norms, how can she survive? How can she ensure the safety of her little boy?
Is It Any Good?
The performances are top notch in this dark and bleak drama. It's an entertaining watch, but there isn't much depth to The Devil to Pay, unfortunately. Even though it's easy to root for the main character, Lemon, and her adorable son, some viewers may take issue with the way the politics and cultures of Appalachian Mountain communities are so violently depicted. Thus, while the viewing is often riveting, there's an underlying sense of only a surface-level delving into life in the Appalachian Mountains. Because of this, some viewers might feel like the setting is at best used as a platform to educate people about the "brutality" of the Appalachian environment/community and at worst is merely a novelty used to warrant such a violent story and outcome.
The other issue is that pretty much the only solution to problems throughout the entire film is violence and extreme violence (killing). This reduces the complexity or depth that could have been mined, given the unique setting.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about violence in dramas. Did the moments of violence in The Devil to Pay enhance or detract from the story? How so?
Would you have made any different decisions than Lemon? If so, what are they and why?
Would you ever live in the mountains? Why or why not?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: January 17, 2023
- Cast: Danielle Deadwyler, Catherine Dyer, Jayson Warner Smith, Adam Boyer
- Directors: Lane Skye, Ruckus Skye
- Studio: Netflix
- Genre: Thriller
- Run time: 87 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
- Last updated: January 31, 2023
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