The Life and Crimes of Ben; Or when a Serial Killer Meets a Film Crew in Man Bites Dog (Critical Essay‪)‬

It is often claimed that since the second half of the 20th century, serial killing has become a typically American activity. As Robert Conrath puts it, "The United States houses just over 5% of the world's population and 75% of its serial killers-Protestant mother England, home to their forebear Jack the Ripper, is number two. Of the 150 serial killers who have been condemned for their multiple murders in the world today, 120 reside in the USA" (1994:145). The same apparently goes for the cinematic serial killer, who, since the 1980s, seems to have increasingly appeared in American pictures which combine features of both horror films and thrillers. The critical peak of this hybrid sub-genre can be traced back to the success of Jonathan Demme's The Silence of the Lambs, which won five Oscars in 1992. Nevertheless, despite any ostensible national specificity, even a small country like Belgium- one which succeeds in producing only a few films each year (1)--tackled the subject around the same period. A low-budget horror comedy, Man Bites Dog was directed by three newcomers (Remy Belvaux, Andre Bonzel, and Benoit Poelvoorde) and was released in Belgium on August 12th, 1992. (2) In the week following its release, it met with a surprising success exceeding that of the Hollywood blockbuster, Lethal Weapon 3, which opened simultaneously. Made over two and a half years, with only six or seven weeks of effective shooting during that span, the film eventually managed to become the most successful Belgian film of its time, and was released in various versions all over the world.