C'est arrivé près de chez vous (1992)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Directors:

Rémy Belvaux
André Bonzel

Writers:

Rémy Belvaux (story)
Rémy Belvaux (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

15 January 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

A Killer Comedy

Plot:

A camera crew follows a serial killer/thief around as he exercises his craft. He expounds on art, music...

Plot Keywords:

Cult Favorite | Shot In The Back | Shot In The Face | Eccentric | Loss Of Parents

Awards:

6 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Benoît Poelvoorde	...	Ben
Jacqueline Poelvoorde-Pappaert	...	Ben's Mother
Nelly Pappaert	...	Ben's Grandmother
Hector Pappaert	...	Ben's Grandfather
Jenny Drye	...	Jenny
Malou Madou	...	Malou
Willy Vandenbroeck	...	Boby
Rachel Deman	...	Mamie Tromblon
André Laime	...	Bed-ridden Old Man
Édith Le Merdy	...	Nurse
Sylviane Godé	...	Rape Victim (Martine)
Zoltan Tobolik	...	Rape Victim's Husband
Valérie Parent	...	Valerie
Alexandra Fandango	...	Kalifa
Olivier Cotica	...	Benichou

Also Known As:

Man Bites Dog (UK) (USA)
It Happened in Your Neighborhood (Belgium: English title)
Man Bites Dog: It Happened in Your Neighborhood (International: English title) (informal title)

MPAA:

Rated NC-17 for strong graphic violence.

Runtime:

95 min | USA:92 min (edited version)

Country:

Belgium

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-18 (cut) (1997) | Finland:K-18 (uncut) (1993) | USA:NC-17 (appeal) | Iceland:16 | Australia:R | Argentina:18 | Singapore:R21 | France:-16 | Germany:18 | Ireland:(Banned) (original rating) | Ireland:18 (re-rating) | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:(Banned) | UK:18 | USA:Unrated (cut)

Filming Locations:

Brussels, Belgium

Company:

Les Artistes Anonymes

Trivia:

According to an essay André wrote, Ben's family didn't know anything about the plot of the film. Ben's mother and grandparents thought they were filming raw footage of Ben, and had no idea that the footage was going to be used in a film in which Ben is a serial killer. Ben's mother was shocked to see her son behind bars, when she comes to visit him in prison.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Ben and Valerie play a duet together, he informs her to play in 4/4 time when the song they play is actually in 3/4 time.

Quotes:

Ben: Usually I start the month with a postman.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006)

Pure genius

One of the nastiest and most notoriously evil dark comedies ever is actually filmed in Belgium. Belgium that is, not France like some people seem to think. It's (at least what I know of) the only Belgian film I've ever seen, but it's also just happens to be one of the best films I've seen from any country.

Benoît Poelvoorde is fantastic as the totally mad and nihilistic serial killer Ben, his mere presence makes this movie stand out. The shootings in black and white makes this movie feel like a real documentary. And the humor is darker than a black steer's tookus on a moonless prairie night. It's fantastically funny, if you can stomach it, that is.

Many scenes of grisly violence against kids, bystanders, elders and various others will probably disgust a whole lot of people, but if you can handle it then you've got yourself a film you'll remember for a long time.

I really wonder what happened to those who made this. They should have been stars by now. This probably just proves that life simply isn't fair.

Genius doesn't come along often. Do yourself a favour and watch this.

10/10