My Friend Dahmer is a 2017 American film written and directed by Marc Meyers and based on the graphic novel of the same name by Derf [John Backderf].
Before Jeffrey Dahmer became one of the most notorious serial killers of all time, he was a teenage loner. Conducting grisly experiments in a makeshift backyard lab, Jeff was invisible to most, until his increasingly bizarre behaviour unexpectedly attracted friends…
The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 21, 2017.
Reviews:
“By disassociating Dahmer from the crimes he would commit, his character is shaped as a pitiably sad personality instead of a purely vile being. My Friend Dahmer doesn’t dismiss the man he became, nor does it beg for “poor Jeff” sympathy. Rather, the plea is to consider how he was created through conscious choice as well as troubling circumstances, and how common those conditions could be.” Ian Sedensky, Culture Crypt
“One of my biggest issue with the film is the frequent use of humour. It’s usually a good thing when dark films pepper humour throughout to lighten the mood, but in the case of My Friend Dahmer, it is so uncomfortably frequent to a point that it is seen in bad taste […] a compelling enough story, with a career-defining, award-worthy performance from Ross Lynch making up for a majority of it’s issues.” Daniel Azbel, Get Reel Movies
“There aren’t many movies about real-life serial killers, and there are even less that try to humanize them to the extent that My Friend Dahmer does. Without trying to coddle, without trying to excuse, Meyers’ makes us realize that even a demon like Dahmer was a boy once and wonder if things could have turned out differently for him.” Reggie Peralta, FilmBook
“Avoiding both sympathy, sentimentality, or hype, director Marc Meyers takes on a more ambitious task. Knowing who he grows up to be adds a level of terror that’s often nearly impossible to capture, so Meyers focuses on Dahmer’s psyche over trying to ham up his violent acts. The scares come more from the growing tension of understanding who he is going to become when he graduates as it gets closer to the end…” Ivy Lofberg, Sordid Cinema
Cast and characters:
- Ross Lynch as Jeffrey Dahmer
- Alex Wolff as Derf
- Vincent Kartheiser as Dr. Matthews
- Anne Heche as Joyce Dahmer
- Dallas Roberts as Lionel Dahmer
- Harrison Holzer as Mike
- Tommy Nelson as Neil
- Miles Robbins as Figg
Filming locations:
Akron and Cleveland, Ohio, USA
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