I Am Not A Serial Killer

Studio: IFC Midnight
Directed by Billy O'Brien

Aug 25, 2016 By Zach Hollwedel Web Exclusive

John Wayne Cleaver likes death. He’s fascinated by serial killers; he knows all of them and their M.O.s by heart. Growing up in his family’s funeral home has only intensified this interest. It has made him comfortable around death, unafraid of dead bodies, mesmerized by them, in fact. More so, John Cleaver knows he has a problem. Deep down, he feels the urge to kill. But John Cleaver isn’t a bad guy; he’s a social outcast at his high school, but he doesn’t wish to inflict the pain on people that many of his favorite murderers have. Thus, he abides by a strict set of self-imposed rules and practices, which help him refrain from acting upon his most violent tendencies. Every ounce of John Cleaver’s resolve is tested, however, when a real serial killer shows up in his town.

Based on Dan Wells’ debut novel of the same name – the first part in a growing John Cleaver series – director Billy O’Brien’s film is a fresh take on the serial killer genre. Max Records (whose extremely limited decade-long film career boasts the role of child protagonist, Max, in Spike Jonze’s Where the Wild Things Are) is perfectly cast as John Wayne Cleaver, a role that simultaneously demands the propensity for great evil, and an almost childlike stubborn willpower to keep it at bay. Records is charismatic, yet able to flip the switch and reveal his lurking sinisterness at the drop of a hat when need be. Equally stellar is Christopher Lloyd (Doc Brown himself) as Crowley, John’s elderly neighbor who soon turns out to be much more than he appears.

I Am Not a Serial Killer shines in its exploration of what it is like to live with inclinations you wish you didn’t have but find it increasingly hard to fight. O’Brien, who co-wrote the script with Christopher Hyde, admirably sets up John as a sympathetic, albeit troubled protagonist, and he lays the theme of serial murderers early and effectively. As such, it comes as a bit of a surprise, one that is not completely earned, when the film adopts a more paranormal bent mid-way through. The shift is true to Wells’ novels (I have not personally read them, but from descriptions online, the film sounds true to its source material), but it breaks from expectations in a way that could make it difficult for some enraptured viewers to get back into total sync with the film. That said, O’Brien’s directorial deftness keeps the momentum going, and considering the wealth of material Wells has already produced, audiences are sure to welcome John Wayne Cleaver back onto the screen if or when he ever returns.

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