The serial killer film has always been a popular one for genre fans — heck, now we’ve even got serial killer television shows to watch. But it’s a tough concept to get right — you need talented actors, a sense of style, and a way to approach it with ideas the audience hasn’t seen a million times before. With that in mind, we’ve got ten films with (mostly) on fictional serial murderers being hunted, most of which are certain to keep you watching your back!
10. Satan’s Little Helper (2004)
Jeff (SQUIRM) Lieberman’s blackly humorous flick about a young boy who befriends a serial killer isn’t splattery, and it’s not entirely believable, but it is a fair share of smirkworthy fun. With Amanda Plummer.
9. Curdled (1996)
Angela Jones plays a woman whose fascination with crime works well with her job of cleaning up the aftermath of murders, but her obsession gets a little too real when she meets an actual serial killer. An original, creative darkly comic thriller, with WIlliam Baldwin, Lois Chiles, Barry Corbin and Bruce Ramsay.
8. In the Cold Light of Day ((1996)
Based on the same novel as Sean Penn’s THE PLEDGE, Rudolf (THE JOHNSONS) van den Berg’s dark-as-hell thriller finds Richard E. Grant as a detective who uses a young woman and her daughter as bait to catch a child murderer. Haunting, eerie, and oddly not on DVD in the United States.
7. Nightwatch (1997)
Ole Bornedal’s American remake of his own film is often overlooked, but it’s a stylish, creepy tale all its own, starring Ewan McGregor as a night watchman who discovers stange things happening in the morgue he guards. With Nick Nolte, Patricia Arquette, Josh Brolin, Brad Dourif and Lauren Graham.
6. Clay Pigeons (1998)
Unjustly forgotten among the many ’90s crime flicks, David Dobkin’s blackly comic tale of small town man who gets framed for murder after meeting up with a serial killer is like a light Coen Brothers flick, with Vince Vaughn, Joaquin Phoenix and Jneane Garofalo at their best.
5. American Psycho (2000)
One of the few movies that’s actually better than the book, Mary Harron’s flick about a psychotic white collar executive still packs a punch of entertainment, and Christian Bale’s Patrick Bateman is a perfectly crafted evil creation. With Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto, Reese Witherspoon, Samantha Mathis, Chloe Sevigny, Justin Theroux, Josh Lucas, Matt Ross, Guinevere Turner and the returning of videotapes.
4. I Saw the Devil (2011)
Ji-woon Kim’s revenge flick is an amazing, intense ride, as a man tracks a serial killer after his fiancee is killed. Clear an evening, sit back, and absorb the chaos.
3. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
Michael Rooker became a cult film star with his starring role in John McNaughton’s brutally creepy film based loosely on the killings of Henry Lee Lucas. More a disturbing character study than a straightforward horror film, and something you need to be in the right mindset to watch, but something that will stay with you for a good while.
2. Manhunter (1986)
Michael Mann’s neon-lit adaptation of Thomas Harris’s “Red Dragon” always seems to be perennially underappreciated, despite a spectacular performance by Tom Noonan. With William Peterson, Kim Greist, Joan Allen, Chris Elliott, Dennis Farina, and Brian Cox as a more subtle version of a character popularized by…
1. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Best considered when dancing are your living room in the nude, genitals tucked. Would you watch it? I’d watch it.
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