Man Bites Dog (1992) [C’est arrivé près de chez vous in French, meaning It Happened Near Your Home]
directed by: Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel, and Benoît Poelvoorde
Rated NC-17 for “strong graphic violence”
For fans of “arthouse” cinema, mockumentaries, and fucked up shit. There’s really no way around it-this movie is definitely not for everyone. I actually don’t think it’s for most people, so I’m gonna do my best to simultaneously recommend the movie and not recommend the movie. That’s a strong strategy for a film recommendation blog trying to find its voice and audience. Really shows I know what I’m doing.
My Rating: Better Be Brave The film is presented as a documentary and shot with very little money, but that does not degrade its quality. It actually makes all of the violence feel much more disturbing and real because it is all presented without a choreographed feel or a stylized look. It is close and visceral and upsetting.
**This movie does depict murder, including children, and also contains a scene of sexual violence.
Some thoughts: I should make something clear- this isn’t like Hostel or Human Centipede or something. Despite the violence, it is not a film that revels in it. I am classifying it as horror, but really it’s a dark comedy/satire. Like I said, the film is presented as a documentary with its focus being Ben, a serial killer. The crew capture Ben as he goes about his day, sharing his thoughts about a wide range of topics, while also murdering people and disposing of their bodies. As the shoot goes on, the crew becomes drawn into Ben’s world and eventually become accomplices.
Even though the film has such brutality, it really is funny. Sometimes the detached nature of the characters makes the violence upsetting, but other times it will make you laugh out loud. I also hate saying something like this, but it really could not be made today. Honestly, I don’t think it could have been made under any other conditions and been nearly as effective. It was made well before the recent popularity of mockumentary style cinema and television, so it looks and feels totally different. Plus, it is a low budget Belgian film (I recommend the French language with subtitles) shot in black and white. It also benefits from the passion of the young filmmakers who made it. According to IMDB, they used actual family members in the film, but did not tell them what it was about.
A mockumentary about a serial killer would feel so tired if it was made today, but this delivers a unique film that actually has something to say. If you think you can stomach it, check it out!