Great Film overall

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Last year, Netflix unleashed one of its bigger hits to date - the nostalgic, creepy and ridiculously entertaining Stranger Things. Set in the 1980s, the show quickly garnered a legion of fans old enough to have grown up on the blockbuster classics of Steven Spielberg, as well as attracting younger viewers drawn to its mystery and lovable characters. While Stranger Things itself may have been influenced by J.J. Abrams' throwback Super 8, the show's success can certainly be felt throughout cinema. One such film is Billy O'Brien's I Am Not a Serial Killer, adapted from Dan Wells' young adult novel of the same name, which manages to hide its low budget roots incredibly well and deliver an interesting character study with a supernatural edge.Teenager John Wayne Cleaver (Max Records) shows all the signs of being a future serial killer. He is well aware that his sinister thoughts and general disdain for humanity do not bode well, and openly tells his therapist so. In order to ensure that he doesn't commit a terrible act he cannot take back, John follows a strict set of rules, including responding to abuse by paying a compliment. It hasn't prevented him from developing a reputation as a freak among his fellow students in high school, but he does enjoy an easy-going friendship with his elderly neighbour, Mr. Crowley (Christopher Lloyd). In his spare time, John helps out his mother (Laura Fraser) with the family funeral home business, where he gets to stare with intense curiosity at the cadavers being readied for embalming. When the town is hit by an organ- stealing murderer, John uses his encyclopaedic knowledge of serial killers to carry out his own investigation.It's to O'Brien's credit that he has managed to sculpt such an impressive-looking piece out of such a modest budget. It has a grungy, 90s aesthetic with a soundtrack including the likes of Donovan and Norman Greenbaum, but with the way it explores its dark subject matter and troubled protagonist, also feels contemporary. The less known about the film the better, as what little I had heard about it before going in led me to believe that I would be getting a serious study of a young sociopath, but this is only half of the story. The young Records, last seen in 2009's Where the Wild Things Are as an eleven year-old, plays the psycho with a heart of gold with a weirdly endearing blend of creepiness and fragility, and Lloyd gives one of his career-best as one of John's prime suspects. It has its flaws, and your enjoyment of the film may depend on how much genre-mixing you can stomach, but this is an odd yet compelling little indie.

It is such a tragedy when a film is so well done and then BAM- it goes to hell at the end. Max Records gives a fantastic performance of a teenager whose dark impulses frighten those around him because they do not understand the mindset of someone different. He is diagnosed as a sociopath from one of the most unethical doctors on film. He lacks empathy and it affects his life significantly. Despite his difficulty expressing or understanding empathy, he is drawn to help an elderly man next door (a great Christopher Lloyd) with secrets of his own. In the meantime, people are dying. This movie went so many interesting places and I loved some of the territory I could identify with. The performances were also top- notch. And then BAM- the ending takes all the best parts of the script and shreds them and wastes so much of the potential of this story. I enjoyed everything until the last ten minutes so much that I still had to give it a 6. It is worth the watch for how good it was and what it could have been with an ending grounded in reality. I understand that it is based on a book- but the book should have had a different ending too if it resembles this story the same way.

Very Low-Budget Film Festival Darling that is now appearing to have Main-Stream Access and a Faint Buzz of sorts. Supposedly Shot on 16mm Fuji Film (although it's hard to tell) but if that's the Fact, why did They bother. It isn't that Grainy or Gritty and the Small Town Winterized Atmosphere will Show in any Format.Max Records is the Lead Teen, that one Guesses, is forever Telling Himself Inside His Head, "I am not a Serial KIller", although He is Fascinated by the Type and Studies the Phenom and even sets Rules for Himself to Keep His Urges in Check.It's a Different sort of Film in the Genre which Works at times to give it an Off-Kilter Approach. The Pacing is Slow but not to a Detriment. The Acting all around is Professional and the Old War Horse Christopher Lloyd Steal the Show (no surprise) given the Juicy Role.There are some Surprises and it Stuns now and then to Keep Things Moving. Some of the Script calls for Things that Require a Strong "Suspension of Disbelief" (a teen working in a Mortuary...Illegal and Morally reprehensible).Overall, it is an Above Average Genre Piece with enough Intrigue and Solid Professionalism to make the Experience Rewarding. But the Storytelling is Lacking in Exposition and Incoherent occasionally, a Frequent Shortcoming in Low-Budget, Quickie Film-Making.Worth a Watch for Fans of the Type. Original but not a whole lot is Refreshing in the often done Serial Killer Sub-Genre.Note...The Lead Teen Character is named "John Wayne Cleaver". That's just silly.Note 2..."Spirit in the Sky" the song by Norman Greenbaum is once again used over the End Credits. A Pop Song utilized more in Opening and Ending Movies, than perhaps any other and...That's just silly.

If your thing is jumpscares galore or "made from the producers of most of the popular horror films this season" don't watch this movie. With that said...As a huge horror movie fanatic, from psychological and paranormal to the gory sides of it, I've seen so many that I've grown tired of the modern cash-grabs. This is where "I am not a serial killer" separates itself from the rest. Now, I haven't read the book, so I can't judge it based on its adaptation. However, as a standalone indie movie it surpassed all my expectations. For one, the setting isn't typically what you'd expect from a horror movie. Yes, a small town and a troubled teen, but John Wayne Cleaver (the teen), wasn't typical either. We follow a kid who has sociopathic tendencies, and the film even goes to the extent of calling him A sociopath. Yes, we've seen anti-heroes, psychopaths and sociopaths as protagonists fighting evil, but this film simply does it in, perhaps, a more honest approach. He's struggling with himself, with his violent urges and anti-social behavior, and in a way he finds escape through fighting the greater evil. And not to get too personal here, but to an extent I related to the main character. The antagonist doesn't fall in any particular category of famous horror movie villains, but it is maybe because of that, that he fit the story. The ending gave a great insight as well to his actions and his own story and we might feel, in a way, empathetic to his reasons. The supporting characters were really nicely written as well, I think.I'm not saying this is a perfect horror movie, *cough* the CGI *cough* but I honestly don't think it'd be fair to compare it to the usual things we get these days. Whereas not only horror movies, but movies of any genre focus more on the CGI, this movie has a better developed story line, better structured characters and an intriguing calm winter aesthetic about it. It is much slower paced than regular horror flicks out there, but it really deserves a watch.Having said all this, my intention isn't to undermine popular modern horror movies, I actually quite enjoyed "The Conjuring 2", instead to hopefully provoke people who want an aesthetically pleasing horror to watch "I am not a serial killer".PS: I'm not sure if John Wayne Cleaver is named after John Wayne Gacy, but that'd be an interesting choice if it were true.