My Friend Dahmer
This biographical tale is adapted from a graphic novel which was created by John Backderf, a school friend of the notorious Jeffrey Dahmer. Sometimes disturbing and at others oddly humorous, Marc Meyers’ fourth feature is a slow and morbid watch.
During the late 1970’s, Jeffrey Dahmer (Ross Lynch) is forced to give up collecting bones to make an effort in school. He becomes a tool of entertainment for a small group of friends, and with hopeful cartoonist Backderf (Alex Wolff) leading the way, Dahmer gains attention but also treads the dangerous path to understanding what animals and we humans could be made of.
What’s eerily compelling about the film is how light it is during many sections. The school based setting, the domestic location and oddball antics set the story up like a coming of age narrative. There is, dare I say it, fun to be had in watching Dahmer finally make a connection with classmates, and their clowning around is dumb but entertaining.
Then there’s the more troubling environment of Dahmer’s difficult home life, with a busy father and argumentative mother. I don’t know if it’s a good thing that this movie makes you feel sympathy for him as a person, almost justifying his distant behaviour and clear apathy. As the film moves further down the timeline towards Dahmer’s graduation, it becomes a snail-like trek to get through; a slow burning aspect that makes you want to see Jeffrey crack.
The lack of a manipulating score gives the movie a brave banality, similar to the empty life Dahmer leads. It’s only in rare moments, of a shopping centre fool around or the later points when he looks to finally snap that Andrew Hollander’s musical effort comes in to impact the unsettling nature of this young mans behaviour.
Lynch is the best thing about a film that did have me feeling it was way longer than 1 hour 40 minutes. The dead stares, hunched shoulders and drooped arms as he mopes through the story are fascinating.
‘My Friend Dahmer’ does slightly drag and seems to waver weakly in connecting the school antics with his home life, but thanks to a feeling of dread mustered by both Lynch and director Meyers, this is an interesting look at how a monster was born.
6/10
