With its deep-fried cinematography, engine oil-colour palette and a score that seems to be composed almost entirely of reverb-heavy blues guitar and cicadas, Mob Land is going all in on the deep southern gothic atmosphere. It’s just a pity that the acting is so conspicuously effortful, the plot is formulaic and the pacing drags like a wounded pig at a hog shoot.
Shiloh Fernandez stars as Shelby, a financially struggling dirt track racer; John Travolta is Shelby’s uncle, the jaded sheriff who brings his own brand of justice to the table. Stephen Dorff chews his way through the role of an out-of-town mob enforcer who crosses paths with both.