Man Bites Dog

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Man Bites Dog

NC-17

Released Jan 15, 1992

1h 36m

Comedy

Crime

Drama

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70%

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20 Reviews

90%

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10,000+ Ratings

The activities of rampaging, indiscriminate serial killer Ben (Benoît Poelvoorde) are recorded by a willingly complicit documentary team, who eventually become his accomplices and active participants. Ben provides casual commentary on the nature of his work and arbitrary musings on topics of interest to him, such as music or the conditions of low-income housing, and even goes so far as to introduce the documentary crew to his family. But their reckless indulgences soon get the better of them.

Marc Savlov

Austin Chronicle

Rated: 4/5

Jan 1, 2000

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Bob Shelton

Birmingham Post

A vicious satire about TV violence that gets out of control and turns into a film almost too violent and depraved to watch.

Sep 26, 2024

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Tom Meek

Cambridge Day

"Man Bites Dog" is a deliriously sharp reflection of society's secret thirst for blood and human spectacle while hypocritically maintaining a stiff moral chin. A unique one-of-a-kind that's not for all.

Rated: 3.5/4

May 4, 2020

Full Review

Vanessa Letts

The Spectator

The sheer kitsch of the characters and settings prevents a real-life audience from ever having to feel genuinely implicated.

Jul 24, 2018

Full Review

Cole Smithey

ColeSmithey.com

[VIDEO ESSAY] Self-reflexive social satire rarely comes with such a hilarious fury of black humor as it does in this ingenious mockumentary about filming a serial killer's pursuits.

Rated: A+

Nov 2, 2015

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

It proves that a catchy title does not necessarily make for a good movie.

Rated: C-

Jul 25, 2012

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Pascal .

Easily not understood by anyone foreign to Belgian humour, this student movie is one of the best movies ever made, by it's simplicity and style of filming (years before The Blairwitch Project), and it's incredibly dark humour and main character played amazingly by Benoit Poelvoorde, where is is as disgusting as he is funny, and sometime even kind of touching

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/12/24

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Jerod S

I tried to roll with "Man Bites Dog" but I just couldn't. The guy traveling around showing how he commits murder is weird and deflated. It's neither dark comedy or horror to me - just weird.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

05/30/24

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Aender S

The best comedy in French language isn't even French. On a side note got to love that Belgian accent, especially protagonist Ben's and his family's.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/16/24

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Stphane T

Un chef-d'oeuvre de l'humour noir!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

11/01/23

Full Review

Nate L

A sick sadistic dark comedy. The main character, Benoit, can be as hilarious as he is frightening. It's truly amazing how a group of students can make a movie this introspective and good.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/07/23

Full Review

s r

1001 movies to see before you die. It was original, but so brutal. I can see why it was on the list, but I don't need to see it again. It was on HBO.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Rémy Belvaux

Director

André Bonzel

Director

Benoît Poelvoorde

Ben

Rémy Belvaux

Rémy (Reporter)

André Bonzel

Andre (Cameraman)

Jean-Marc Chenut

Patrick (Sound Man No. 1)

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Robert Altman’s The Player is a Meta Exploration of Hollywood’s Twisted Self-Obsession

Man Bites Dog Is a Potent Mix Of Indie Film Cliches and Bloodlust

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Synopsis

The activities of rampaging, indiscriminate serial killer Ben (Benoît Poelvoorde) are recorded by a willingly complicit documentary team, who eventually become his accomplices and active participants. Ben provides casual commentary on the nature of his work and arbitrary musings on topics of interest to him, such as music or the conditions of low-income housing, and even goes so far as to introduce the documentary crew to his family. But their reckless indulgences soon get the better of them.

Director: Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel
Producer: Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel, Benoît Poelvoorde
Screenwriter: Benoît Poelvoorde, Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel, Vincent Tavier
Distributor: Roxie Releasing, Criterion Collection
Production Co: Les Artistes Anonymes
Rating: NC-17
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 15, 1992, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 2, 2017
Runtime: 1h 36m