In his short career , Campos has developed a distinctive style , favoring long takes filled with silent introspection , but there ’ s little of his cinematic MO to be found here . The Devil All the Time has the journeyman look of prestige TV , with impatient editing that ’ s always desperate to move on to the next chapter or awkwardly return to an earlier important detail . Perhaps , with such an expansive narrative , The Devil All the Time may have been better suited to TV , where each of its characters
could have a full episode devoted to their particular shenanigans . That said , at two hours and 20 minutes it ’ s not much shorter than Altman ’ s Nashville , which gives us even more characters and subplots yet makes us feel like we ’ ve known its inhabitants all our lives . It ’ s not the length , but what you do with it ; Campos ’ s film spends its 138 minutes pumping away robotically in the missionary position , and by its climax we ’ re not left satisfied , just a little numb .
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The Devil All The Time
2 ½ stars out of 5
Directed by : Antonio Campos Starring : Tom Holland , Robert Pattinson , Mia Wasikowska , Bill Skarsgård , Riley Keough , Jason Clarke , Sebastian Stan , Haley Bennett , Harry Melling , Eliza Scanlen , Pokey LaFarge