Review by Amos Lassen
By: Amos Lassen
Joe (Matthew McKelligon) just told his boyfriend, George (Jeffery Self) that he is a serial killer and George thinks that his boyfriend, Joe, is hilarious. Joe and George meet just as Joe is coming out to himself as someone who loves to kill. George,...
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Joe (Matthew McKelligon) just told his boyfriend, George (Jeffery Self) that he is a serial killer and George thinks that his boyfriend, Joe, is hilarious. Joe and George meet just as Joe is coming out to himself as someone who loves to kill. George, on the other hand, can't decide which wig to wear for his next YouTube video. Then George's friends start disappearing, one by one. Joe started with murdering small animals but now that he has been released from the Mental Institution he has progressed to adults and mostly gay ones, particularly annoying ones, and they are several of them in this new horror/romantic comedy about a group of self-absorbed gay men and their straight girlfriends in L.A.
you're killing me4
Joe began his human killing spree when the hot man he had been dating a whole week wanted to finally get him naked. His next boyfriend is George, who he first spots online in some episodes of his funny and cheesy web series and he decides to stalk him. George has a serious case of AHDD as well as been wrapped up in his own little world and assumes that Joe is joking when he refers to the people he just keeps knocking off. Joe however is very serious especially about how much he already loves George, so much so that he takes him home to meet his eccentric and totally disinterested parents. When his mother raises an objection to the fact he has brought a stranger into the rather grand family mansion, it's obvious that she too will done away with soon. Love evidently conquers all and when George finally wakes up to what is going on, he stands by his man (after he picks himself up after being knocked to the floor).
Directed and co-written by Jim Hansen who cut his filmmaking teeth as costume designer this is an interesting attempt to combine the two genres in this way. We first meet Joe in the first ten minutes of the film and we assume that he is just a guy who is somewhat awkward and does not joke-he is too simple for that. But we sense something strange about him even though we are not sure exactly what it is. Then when his boyfriend asks him what does he do to get off, something happens in his mind and we know that there is a story there. We see his mind dealing with grotesque visions and we sense the chaos that he feels while engaged in a rather simple conversation. His psychic thoughts are visualized for us and we are ready for what is yet to come along with his mental deterioration.
That is, until, his boyfriend asks him what "gets him off," and we see a series of shots flash in Joe's mind: Suddenly, we know something is up with Joe. We see these weird, somewhat grotesque visions build in his mind, and we experience the chaos he feels in normal, humdrum conversations internally. The visualization of his psychotic thoughts primes the viewer for the scene that follows, and the continual mental deterioration Joe experiences throughout the film. By showing us a visualization of an otherworldly figure that's atypical of your average protagonist/antagonist, "You're Killing Me" presents us with a unique style of filmmaking throughout, and it's interesting and fascinating to watch.
There have not been many LGBT slasher-comedies so this is already a unique film. It is a refreshingly fantastic surprise that might prompt some viewers to watch certain scenes through half-closed eyes. Using an allegory for coming out, Joe announced that he is a serial killer but everyone assumes that he is just joking. After all, serial killers are rarely so good looking and besides Joe is gay, we suppose, and there are no gay slashers.
From their very first meeting, Joe tries to be open and honest with his new boyfriend, George who he actually likes because he thinks that he is accepting of having a serial killer as a boyfriend. Of course George thinks Joe is a laugh riot and is totally clueless to the brutal honesty of Joe's confessions.
When the violence begins, we see that it is not just gratuitous-it has some messages about modern society. The film is a morality tale about self-obsession and our growing disconnection with the world around us. It is filled with catty gay men who care more about pop culture trivia than truly connecting with their friends. The characters may seem like flamboyant caricatures, but there is a lot of honesty hidden in the satire of the film. By making some of the characters terribly annoying, Hansen leads us to cheer Joe on as he cuts up his victims, one by one.
George is so narcissistic that he doesn't notice the many obvious clues that suggest that Joe is a sociopathic serial killer. When his friends tell him that Joe is a little scary, George throws it off and says that "he isn't scary, he's gorgeous."
I see the film as a biting commentary on the vain, self-obsessed, opportunistic ideals of many contemporary gay men. I, however, do not think that the movie will fare well in straight society and movie houses but for the LGBT community, this is a winner.