How to Be a Serial Killer

The best black comedies, such as Fargo or Dr. Strangelove have the genius of the Coen brothers or Stanley Kubrick behind them. How to Be a Serial Killer is an interesting concept which never really develops into anything memorable. Written and directed by Luke Ricci, a man who will never be in the same company as the aforementioned directors of the past(Kubrick) or present(Coens).

Mike Wilson is a combination of the articulate and charismatic Ted Bundy, and the fictional Dexter from the Showtime series. Mike is on an infomercial, promoting the killing of annoying people. He takes on a student, Bart, and instructs him on how to dispose of corpses and the many different and creative ways of committing murder. The result is a mildly amusing comedy, which sort of breezes along and is at the level of a made for TV movie.

I don't even remember when I laughed. That is not a good sign when the good jokes aren't even memorable.

Now, understand that I have nothing against this movie's premise. A comedy about a serial killer could've worked, as could a movie analyzing a serial killer's delusion about himself and what he does. However, this movie tries to be both. As such, it was impossible for me to take the serious bits seriously due to the attempts at comedy and the comedic bits aren't exaggerated enough for me NOT to take them seriously. If you want to be comedic, be comedic. If you want to be serious, be serious. Don't try to meet halfway. The only point where I started taking the film completely seriously was at the end during the climax, and even then I didn't like what I was seeing.

While I held high hopes for this movie at the beginning thanks to its title, those hopes were quickly dashed when we were introduced to our resident serial killer, Mike. Now, nothing against the actor, but in a comedy with as dark a subject matter as this, there is no place for people. And that's my main problem with Mike: the film tries too hard to portray him as a normal person while forgetting that comedy comes from the abnormal, the twisted, and the weird. Mike wasn't any of those things. He was just "normal", and as such, the movie's attempts to portray his character comically fall flat. Then again, maybe I was supposed to take them seriously, but because of the unclear tone the movie had I was unsure whether I was supposed to laugh or be horrified. Most of the time I was horrified.

Despite that, while I might not have liked this movie, I let it keep two additional stars on the merit of its premise and the fact that while the problems in this movie are big ones, they're hardly rage-inducing.

And please, if you're going to make a movie about a serial killer, go full-bore. Don't try to meet the two ends of the spectrum halfway.

When my buddies asked me to check out the Horror Film Festival this weekend, I did not suspect to view such a modern twist on the traditional "horror" genre. Rather than drinking in the normally comedic levels of blood and gore, this film let the audience laugh with it. Interestingly, it was at its least gory at the most cinematic points, whether it was the entertaining relationship between Mike and Bart, or the conjured fantasies of the former. The acting of both Dameon Clarke and Matthew Gray Gubler were refreshingly believable, given the set up. I call this a darkumentary because that it takes on the form of a crew following around a spontaneous (not quite serial) killer, Mike, and his apprentice/pupil/friend/video store employee, Bart. As with other "mockumentaries," this creation has a tongue-in-cheek tone throughout. Nonetheless, its humor surpasses what has become banal in horror films of a more traditional ilk. I haven't a strong background when it comes to Horror, and was bashful of my lack thereof while at this horror festival, but I recognized this movie as a new breed of horror. I laughed at the sheer inhumanity because the movie was at that level; I did not laugh when Mike questioned Bart's loyalty, nor when Bart hypothesized worst-case scenarios of getting found out. In fact, the characters in this horror might be its most distinguishing element. Most horror films, even Army of Darkness, are carried by a single lead role. In "How to be a Serial Killer," we follow the progression of 2 men, albeit one in the shadow of the other. Thanks to its documentary side scenes, we get a chance to separate the fourth wall in a genre that is rarely looked at as being multi-dimensional. The more I think about this movie, the more I like it. Funny, well written, impeccable blood and gore, and more thought provoking than I had initially felt. I'll say it here, I think this movie could shed new light on what horror is really all about. Apparently Matthew Gray Gubler has somewhat of a following, and I agree that both leading actors are deserving of future roles.

For the most part, "How to Be a Serial Killer" is a sharp, charming, and very funny combination of satire and dark comedy. It's so engagingly performed that one is willing to go along for the ride. Granted, towards the end it actually starts to become more conventional and predictable, but getting there is still a good deal of fun. It never gets that gory, so the less squeamish in the audience shouldn't be squirming too much. What's great about it is how completely our lead character believes in himself and his methodology; the movie is at its brightest when it's making fun of the business of motivational speaking and our merry murderer is offering all manner of lessons in the fine art of serial killing. The filmmaking is overall fairly slick and the kills are done in a rather stylized way.

The movie is a solid vehicle for prolific working actor Dameon Clarke, who's done a great deal of voice-over work for video games. He delivers a charismatic, confident performance as Mike Wilson, who wishes to impart his wisdom to a young apprentice, whom he's decided will be meek video store employee Bart (Matthew Gray Gubler of 'Criminal Minds'). Mike teaches Bart everything that he knows, from victim selection to body disposal - not to mention trying to keep a loved one, in this case Mikes' girlfriend Abigail (Laura Regan, "Dead Silence") - in the dark for as long as possible. Their scenes are intercut with those of a psychologist, Dr. Goldberg (veteran comedy character actor George Wyner of "Spaceballs") educating us on the nature of serial murderers.

This is spirited, high-energy entertainment with a rather profound wrap-up, which shows that there is more going on here than just the comedy quotient. Clarke and the likable Gubler work well together and the story has enough pacing and cleverness going for it to make it worth recommending to others.

Eight out of 10.

Just finished watching How To Be A serial Killer and to be honest it was a disappointment. I'm pretty sure they got their inspiration from a Belgian movie C'est arrivé près de chez vous (Man Bites Dog,1992) from Rémy Belvaux, a movie that is by the way much better, I recommend you watch that one instead and find out for yourself. That said, How To Be A Serial Killer tries to be funny, dark humor (normally my favorite), but it's just not working. The acting wasn't great either, certainly not towards the end. Anyway, just watch the Belgian movie if you want good mockumentary on the same subject spiced up with some real effective dark humor.