Some Guy Who Kills People

Ken Boyd (Kevin Corrigan, Grounded for Life) is a newly released mental patient who works at an ice cream shoppe by day and dispatches the people that he blames for screwing his life up by night. Sheriff Walt (Barry Bostwick, Spin City) is the cop out to get the perp, once he finds out who he is.

This film came as quite a shock. Renting it at Redbox (always a risky gamble) and knowing nothing about it, I was very pleasantly surprised to find out that this movie was expertly acted by all involved. Corrigan and Bostwick are both great, as is the eternally beautiful Karen Black as Ken's mother. It's also funny, Bostwick in particularly shines in this aspect. The less said of the plot the better but suffice it to say it could very well be the best horror-comedy of the new millennium.

My Grade: A

The Dexter series has paved the way nicely for some modern anti-heroes. It's OK to be a serial killer provided the people you kill are not nice people. The worse the crime, the more acceptable (on screen) it is to kill the criminal and the less guilty we can feel about enjoying the spectacle of their death.

So Some Guy Who Kills People rides along on similar rails and gives us someone we can both root for, be afraid of and concerned about all in one highly confusing package.

Kevin Corrigan plays unorthodox Ken Boyd, a depressive cartoonist recently released from the 'loony bin' into a world he doesn't understand. Clearly resident in the kind of small town community where everyone knows everyone else, Boyd lives with his sardonic mother (Karen Black) and works the only job he can get: slopping out ice cream at the local diner.

Ken keeps his head down and his mouth shut, but life has a way of intruding on his self-imposed cocoon in the form of his best friend Irv's unyielding encouragement to get out there and grab the bull by the horns, the attentions of beautiful English girl Stephanie (Lucy Davis) and Ken's long absent daughter of eleven years, Amy. This trio of distractions are merciless in their presence, drawing Ken away from his preferred mode of introspection and silence.

Character development is awesome, with young Ariel Gade hitting just the right level of chatty pre-teen and needy daughter vs vulnerable sweet kid and mini-charmer to win us over rather than put us off. Corrigan is effortlessly charismatic despite his apparent predilection for decapitating his enemies, and his rarity of lines (despite his presence in most scenes). Lucy Davis is a little too attractive and besotted to be believable, particularly as the first time she encounters Ken he is dressed up in a most unbecoming giant ice-cream costume. Davis also has a limited acting range, giving the same performance here as she gave in The Office and other American projects of late.

But Barry Bostwick is simply sublime as the eminently watchable Sheriff Walt Fuller and Karen Black puts in a great performance as the disillusioned chain-smoking mother with only the lowest expectations in her son.

Ultimately a moral warning about the perils of withdrawing and allowing the past to consume the present; thus missing out on the important things (like the parent/child relationship) Some Guy Who Kills People is a thought-provoking, beautifully crafted tale from beginning to end featuring some of the most comically subtle black humour you're ever likely to see on the big screen. You'll laugh, but you'll also hover on the edge of your seat. Mixing comedy with genuine drama is no mean feat and full credit should go to Perez, Levin and their wonderful cast for pulling it off with unparalleled aplomb.

Ken Boyd (Kevin Corrigan), a lonely man fresh out of the loony bin, sets out to kill those he deems responsible for his miserable life.

Since I did not know most of the people attached to this (besides Karen Black and executive producer John Landis), I did not know what to expect. I set my sights low, and came out with quite an impressed mind. This is not your typical slasher. It is oddly endearing and has just enough comedy and plot twists to really keep the audience interested.

Kevin Corrigan is superb, Barry Bostwick even better... but, of course, we must salute Ariel Gade in this breakout performance. She adeptly portrays the precocious 11-year old Amy, and is both likable and a good plot-carrier. Gade, even more than Corrigan, keeps the story going.

I have not yet checked out the special features, but would like to. I think they would greatly enhance my understanding and appreciation for this already pleasantly-surprisingly gem.

You've got all the elements of a 80's slasher here. Comic geek, bullies, mean mom, quirky sheriff. so that's what I was expecting an average slasher to pass a Saturday afternoon. What I got was so much more! Great writing, great character development and great acting! I'm not big on the trivia of movies/acting so the only person I recognized was Barry Bostwick as the quirky sheriff and he played it brilliantly. I also thought the girl who played Amy was quite good and expect to see her getting more work. At first I wasn't too fond of Ken, the lead character, but as the story went on I got to really like him which I think says great things about both the writing and the guys acting. There is a twist at the end and you kind of know there will be but you just don't know which way it's going to twist. I was happy with the ending though, happy with the whole movie in fact. Only thing I would tell people is don't go into it expecting blood and guts, you're not going to get it. Not sure I'd even label it as horror, more of a thriller and a drama, oh and can't forget the comedy. It all ties together well. One of the best I've seen in awhile!

This movie totally surprised me in a good way. With the name of the movie, I thought that this was going to be one of those movies. Yeah, you know the kind I am talking about. Boy was I surprised when this movie was finished.

Despite having a super cheesy named, "Some Guy Who Kills People", then the movie really had a great storyline and it was really nicely executed. Plus the characters in the movie were really interesting, vibrant and full of personalities. And of course, the great cast really helped moving the movie along nicely.

The story is about socially-challenged Ken Boyd (played quite well by Kevin Corrigan) who has been released from a mental institution, and he is now living in a small rural community. Having been bullied by a bunch of people, Ken plans for the demise of his tormentors. Unforeseen, his estranged daughter shows up in his life after 11 years, and Ken is now also struggling to coming to terms with being a father.

"Some Guy Who Kills People" does have a great list of actors and actresses to its credit. As mentioned above, then Kevin Corrigan really did a great job in portraying the main character. And his daughter, played by Ariel Gade, really brought a lot of charisma and merriment to the movie. It was also great to see Barry Bostwick and Karen Black in their respective roles.

This is the type of movie that lets you slip into the storyline alongside the characters, because they are so nicely portrayed and have a lot of depth to their personalities. You quickly form bonds with characters and get carried away into the movie.

The movie is so wonderfully absurd and twisted that it is actually fun and a great treat to watch. The director, Jack Perez, really handled the balance between comedy and horror so well, and made it work so great, and the end result is a rather enjoyable movie that most likely will surprise most viewers.

If you haven't seen "Some Guy Who Kills People" yet, then you should treat yourself to it, because it is well worth a watch.