I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016)

In a small Midwestern town, a troubled teen with homicidal tendencies must hunt down and destroy a supernatural killer while keeping his own inner demons at bay.

Director:

Billy O'Brien

Writers:

Billy O'Brien, Christopher Hyde

Stars:

Max Records, Christopher Lloyd, Laura Fraser

10 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Max Records	...	John Wayne Cleaver
Christopher Lloyd	...	Mr. Crowley
Laura Fraser	...	April Cleaver
Christina Baldwin	...	Aunt Margaret
Karl Geary	...	Dr. Neblin
Dee Noah	...	Kay Crowley
Lucy Lawton	...	Brooke Watson (as Lucile Lawton)
Anna Sundberg	...	Lauren Bacall Cleaver
Raymond Brandstrom	...	Max
Michael Paul Levin	...	Max's Dad
Vincent Risso	...	Rob Anders
Tony Papenfuss	...	Ron the Coroner
Matt Roy	...	Drifter
James Gaulke	...	Principal Layton (as Jim Gaulke)
Tim Russell	...	Greg Olsen the Barber

Storyline

In a small Midwestern town, a troubled teen with homicidal tendencies must hunt down and destroy a supernatural killer while keeping his own inner demons at bay.

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Plot Keywords:

rooftop | teenage protagonist | party | voyeurism | hoodie | 

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Taglines:

Every Town Has Its Monsters

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

Ireland UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 August 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ben Katil Degilim

Filming Locations:

Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

Box Office

Budget:

€1,254,470 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Floodland Pictures, Fantastic Films, Level 5 Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Karl Geary (Dr. Neblin) and Laura Fraser (April Cleaver) are married, hence the scene not found in the novel where John (Max Records) spies on them having dinner.

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Goofs

Crowley can be seen carrying a landing net, which would not be used for ice fishing.

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Quotes

Kay Crowley: He said "I never got it before now, Kay." And he told me he loved me more than anything in heaven or hell. He was very romantic with his words.

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Connections

Referenced in I Hate Everything: the Search for the Worst: Baby Geniuses (2015)

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Soundtracks

4am in Malta
Performed by Pony Club Disco
Written by Boston Slevin

User Reviews

Out-of-the-Box

It honestly doesn't happen too often that I fancy thrillers/horror movies that are deliberately slow-paced and proudly refer to themselves as being black comedies and/or social satires, but "I Am Not A Serial Killer" is clearly an exception and I really did love this film! There's nothing too extraordinary innovative about the settings, character drawings or even the story line(s), but the overall tone and atmosphere of the film is so damn bleak and moody that it almost becomes mesmerizing. From his 2005 debut feature "Isolation", we already knew that Irish bloke Billy O'Brien is a talented director, but for some strange reason it apparently took him another eleven years to come up with his next great movie. But here it is, a solid adaptation of Dan Wells' undoubtedly terrific novel (haven't read it yet) with formidable performances from a stellar cast and an absorbing dark ambiance. The story is set in a typically remote little town called Clayton somewhere in a Northwestern State – Minnesota, I think – where it gets damn cold, depressing and snowy during the winter months. 16-year-old John Wayne Cleaver is heavily struggling with his inner demons. He's the type of kid who gets bullied at school because he's introvert, peculiar and obsessed with death. His obsession might have something to do with the fact that his mother runs a funeral home, but John is also strongly convinced that – whether or not reluctantly – he will someday become history's most notorious serial killer. When people suddenly start disappearing and strange accidents occur all over town, John naturally becomes fascinated with the idea of discovering who is responsible for these acts and follow him/her around. He quickly develops a connection with his friendly and elderly, but nevertheless mysterious neighbor Mr. Crowley. The least you can say about "I Am Not A Serial Killer" is that it's a non-conventional horror movie, or – to put it in marketing terms – a horror movie that thinks out-of-the- box and also invites the viewer to step out of his/her comfort zone. The biggest trump of this film is undoubtedly that it doesn't rely on gory effects or jump scares. Don't be alarmed yet, gorehouds, as there ARE gory effects and there ARE jump scares, there just isn't any exaggerated focus or building up towards to. Instead, "I Am Not A Serial Killer" serves an intelligent screenplay full of ambiguities and flirts with the supernatural. Countless of horror stories, whether big-budgeted or shoestring, are set in small American towns, but very few of them capture the atmosphere and people portrayals so accurately as this one. That's particularly praiseworthy because director O'Brien is Irish! The acting performances are downright fantastic, with a seriously strong role for young Max Records as the offbeat and narcissist teenager John Wayne Cleaver. And then there's Christopher Lloyd… I really love this actor! Lloyd makes every film that he appears in extra macabre! Whether he appears in a drama (like "The Onion Field" or "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest"), in dark comedies (like "The Addams Family" or "Who Framed Roger Rabbit") or even in a kid's movie (like "Dennis the Menace"), Christopher Lloyd always depicts a wondrously morbid character. His role here is one of the finest of his career.