The Devil All The Time
NETFLIXCo-written and directed by Antonio Campos, The Devil All the Time is the screen adaption of the novel of the same name by author Donald Ray Pollock. Pollock is also the narrator of this twisted post-World War II tale. Set between two small towns in Ohio and West Virginia, the connection between the two – according to the narrator – is the either dumb luck or God’s intention.
The film stars Tom Holland as Arvin, an orphaned son of a WWII veteran who lives with his grandmother and uncle along with another orphan, Lenora (Eliza Scanlen). The two form a sibling-like bond and look out for one another no matter what. When the town’s new preacher, played by Robert Pattinson, begins a relationship with Lenora in the name of the Lord, Arvin gets suspicious and becomes at odds with the preacher. This is the pair's second film together, with Holland giving a career-best performance while Pattinson shows off his star power for the second time in one month following Tenet.
This central conflict is preceded by Arvin’s father Willard, played by Bill Skarsgård, coming home from the war. The whole film is connected, as the past shapes the future and history always repeats itself. An occasional non-linear structure, with outcomes being shown before the event, is meant to dig deeper into themes of the past being repeated and justification of one’s actions in the name of religion. The structure of the film is all held together with key pacing by editor Sofía Subercaseaux.
The war had made most of the population religious. Everything that someone does, good or bad, is in the name of the Lord. This is seen by Arvin’s grandmother attributing her great cooking to God or by the town’s original preacher committing a murder, because he believed the Lord wanted him to perform the miracle of resurrection. As time gets further away from the end of the war, the feeling of peace begins to drift away. The world is beginning to feel normal and people lose their faith. This is best seen with Pattinson’s preacher not believing, but using the gospel to speak in deceiving sermons to get others to act as he pleases, such as the serpent from the book of Genesis.
There are those that never became religious and made their own decisions. The serial killer pair, played by Riley Keough and Jason Clarke, go on a gruesome killing spree throughout the course of the film. The intentionally ignorant deputy, played by Sebastian Stan, also operates under the belief that the past won’t have an effect on the future. The circular script says otherwise, and the past catches up with these outlaw characters in ways you’ll have to see to believe.
The Devil All the Time is a progression from the end of World War II to the Vietnam War. How the story of this giant ensemble comes together is just like the narrator says: dumb luck or God’s doing. Either way, only one thing is true, the devil is there all the time.