William Friedkin's dark comedy thriller Killer Joe is to open this year's Edinburgh International Film Festival, it was announced today. The film stars Matthew McConaughey as a charming hitman hired by Emile Hirsch's drug dealer, who wants to kill his own mother. Atonement's Juno Temple is the younger sister put up as collateral, who finds herself falling in love.
The film represents a bit of a coup for festival director Chris Fujiwara, who has promised big names and big pictures for this year's event. "I intend to deliver a diverse programme that will spotlight filmmaking of real artistic distinction," he said today. "William Friedkin’s exhilarating, intense, and brilliantly crafted film is absolutely in keeping with this ambition."
Friedkin, in turn, has thanked the festival organisers for daring to select a film that has been censored by US rating authority the MPAA.
