Our society, especially in certain areas of the country, is obsessed with violence and power. Film has provided many examples of this throughout the history of its art form, including everything from gangster pictures like Scarface (not the Al Pacino version) to this year’s One Battle After Another. They take place everywhere from the biggest cities to the smallest towns. As there are so many examples, especially in the big city scenario, sometimes it can be interesting to narrow the focus to more rural areas. This is what Violent Ends attempts to accomplish.
The film follows Lucas Frost (Billy Magnussen), who is related to a crime family in the Ozark Mountains. But he is not directly involved; he just wants to lead a simple life, away from his violent family, with his fiancée, Emma (Alexandra Shipp). In a deeply unsurprising turn of events, he is pulled back into the violence of his family structure. The film opens with intertitles detailing the history of the Frost family and their connection to cocaine and methamphetamine sale and trafficking. The film seems to want to have these intertitles do the job that the script sorely needs to handle on its own. The script, from director John-Michael Powell, leaps right into Lucas and Emma’s relationship and seems content to slowly introduce the rest of the family in a series of escalating moments of violence.
The details of their crimes and history seem unimportant besides setting a standard and the stakes. Luckily, Magnussen is more than up to the task of playing the romantic hero, which might be surprising. He has made a career of playing villains and overenergetic characters, but in this western stereotype, only broken up by moments of happiness with Emma, he manages to be both charming and dangerous. Shipp, in a smaller role, certainly is able to play the female romantic lead well, even if the script does not give her a great deal to work with. There is nothing new here in this relationship, but they are both such enjoyable presences that it never matters much.
Frankly, all of the performances are of a high quality, despite being hamstrung by a story that rehashes Western and anti-Western tropes. In particular, Kate Burton, playing Lucas’ mother, who also happens to be a police officer, commands the screen at every turn. Yes, it feels contrived to have a family member also be in law enforcement, but she gives the anxiety-producing standoffs real weight and gravity. Additionally, the real villain of the piece, Sid Frost (James Badge Dale), is a terrifying presence. Despite the fact that this is a crime drama, Badge Dale never seems unbelievable. With a simple narrowing of his eyes, he manages to force us to lean in when we (and the other characters) want to run away. He is somehow both appealing and repellent in the same breath.
Like most films, Violent Ends is a bit derivative. But, although there is not much here that is wholly original, it tells its story well enough to be entertaining throughout. I will say that, as someone who lives in the South, it was refreshing that the cast was not full of “yokels” or “rednecks.” Even if characters were not college-educated, none of them were outright stupid. People from the South have dreams, desires, and goals. It may seem like a small thing, but not having people from this area be the butt of a thousand jokes does make it stand out from most material being filmed ostensibly in this area. Powell, along with cinematographer Elijah Guess, clearly has a love for the area and displays it with an affinity that those from the outside seem incapable of producing.
Although we always hope for greatness in cinema, there is a goodness in being solid enough to watch. Violent Ends falls distinctly in the “good enough” category. The performances and the cinematography carry a script that is left wanting. Frankly, this one is worth sitting through to see Magnussen and Shipp, even if their moments are well too brief. They are the engine that makes the film move, and without them, it would be a throwaway Southern crime drama.
Violent Ends will debut exclusively in theaters on October 31, 2025, courtesy of Independent Film Company.
Like most films, Violent Ends is a bit derivative. But, although there is not much here that is wholly original, it tells its story well enough to be entertaining throughout.
-
GVN Rating
Dave is a lifelong film fan who really got his start in the independent film heyday of the 90’s. Since then, he has tried to branch out into arthouse, international, and avant garde film. Despite that, he still enjoys a good romcom or action movie. His goal is to always expand his horizons, through writing and watching new movies.
