Serial Killing 4 Dummys (2004) Reviews

• A must see spoof for all slasher film fans!

  livin_on_the_edge2005-08-22

  This movie shows the life of a seemingly disturbed high school student who wants, without success, to be a notorious serial killer when he grows up. He befriends a suicidal classmate who wants to be his first victim, and she tries to help become a killer. And while all this is going on, there's an actual serial killer on the loose in their town and they try to use their "killer" knowledge to profile the murderer. This movie had me laughing so hard I almost peed my pants! Kudos to the writers and the actors, because the plot was great, and the acting was superb. Thomas Haden Church (remember him from Demon Night?) gives a hilarious performance as the "gymnasium class teacher". I swear I will never stick my nose up at another Lion's Gate film! I would definitely recommend this film to all horror fans!

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• An Entertaining Comedy/Horror

  se7en1872003-05-02

  I saw this movie last year at the Waterfront Film Festival in Saugatuck, Michigan. It was a Friday night, the perfect time to watch it, and I had a great time. MINOR SPOILERS Stuart Stone plays a High School student who gets complaints from his teachers for having no ambition. So Stone decides he wants to be famous by becoming a serial killer. Along the way, Lisa Loeb (yes, Lisa Loeb), a fellow student and outcast finds out about his scheme and wants to be his first victim. She helps him become the part by grooming him, helping him research, etc. Unfortunately, he doesn't have it in him to kill people. And things get bad when killings start happening in his town, and he isn't the one doing them. SPOILERS END This movie was very entertaining, though it seems a little cliched, it's a great movie to watch at night on the weekend. And you can't go wrong with a cameo from Cory Feldman. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find this movie since I saw it last year. I hope it comes to video soo. 9/10

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• Twisted fun

  BrianSF2004-04-18

  This movie was surpisingly great....a satire on slashers, school, young love, and right livelihood. Casey Noland sets out to be a killer but ends up a hero. He attempts to defy as many of society's conventions as possible but his inner goodness brings him to a place of true redemption and the possibilities of a good and wonderful future. I really enjoyed this film..not expecting very much starting out but it grows on you with each frame. The director and writer (same) has a true wit and seems to have a removed view of society's conventions; allowing her to create this kind of twisted, unconventional but truly fun piece of off kilter reality slash movie.

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• a pleasant surprise

  j-dewolff2004-03-12

  I bought the dvd very cheap, had never heard of this movie before, knew none of the actors by name and just went for the title (which incidentally on my copy just read: "Serial Killer"), the summary on the backside ("teen has an obsession to become a serial killer and looks for persons to test his skills on") and the genre-indication "horror". So I figured that I was in for some highschool slashing and akward acting (which can actually be quite amusing when you've nothing better to watch). Surprise!! This is no horror at all, not even scary, and I didn't even sense any pretension to be a parody for a horror-movie. It's just a very funny movie, based on a horror-like theme, which is of course totally unrealistic (a highschool teen who tells everyone that his career-prospective is to be a serial killer) but treated so consistently that you kind of get along with it. It's not hilarious, but has a dry, tongue-in-cheek kind of humour. There's some good acting (Justin Urich, who's very cute by the way, and the mother), and Thomas Haden Church's acting goes in a convincing and funny way totally over the top! I really had a great time watching it. So if anyone can get his hands on it: don't hesitate but buy it!!

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• Some nice stuff here, but...

  jbarker712004-10-31

  It's nice to see Thomas Haden Church doing some work, as his performances are always good. On top of everything- this film was well made, I thought. Cinematography, acting, and the editing. The music wasn't my favorite, in places (check out the White Zomby rip-offs). I spent most of the movie wondering why Lisa Loeb was there, and wondering why she was in a high school flick, when she'd be in her 30s. She and the Casey character acted quite well, I thought. Favorite line was was the coach talking about how someone couldn't hide up a rope in a large gymnasium. Not that that's really a cliché (hiding up a rope), but this movie didn't really deconstruct serial killers (sure, it profiled them), as it was a comedy first and foremost and a gore flick somewhere later. Oh, so THAT'S why they were throwing frisbees...

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