The Clovehitch Killer (4/5)

The Clovehitch Killer is based on a real-life serial killer who is never named in the movie – which I loved. Strong performances and a tight story create a brilliant horror thriller well worth your time!

The Clovehitch Killer is very clearly based on a real-life serial killer, who has been caught and is spending the rest of his life in jail. The story very obviously tells us who it’s based on without ever naming the serial killer.

I loved this fact since they already revel in their infamy. After all, plenty of movies are made about these serial killers, who are household names, while few of us know the names of any victims.

This isn’t exactly about the victims either. Instead, The Clovehitch Killer is about the family and friends of both victims and serial killer.

Clovehitch inspired by the BTK serial killer

While I do love that the movie never mentions the serial killer inspiring the “Clovehitch Killer” character, I also know most of us are curious about who it is.

It’s the BTK serial killer, Dennis Rader, who was arrested in 2005. So while he was active long before this, he is one of the more recent serial killers to be arrested and convicted.

We will be getting to know this particular serial killer in season 2 of the Netflix series Mindhunter as well. He was the character we always saw little segments with, but never really got to know.

Also read: Our review of Mindhunter season 1 on Netflix here >

Rumor has it that season 2 of Mindhunter will focus on the BTK serial killer. For those who are (fortunate enough) not to know what BTK stands for, I can reveal that BTK is for “Bind, Torture, Kill”.

This should also give you an indication of the title character in The Clovehitch Killer.

Dylan McDermott is spine-chilling

Most people probably know who the actor Dylan McDermott is. Horror fans may instantly remember him from the first season of American Horror Story (called “Murder House”).

He also starred in the David E. Kelley legal drama The Practice for several years. And, of course, he has done several movies over the years. Basically, it feels like he’s always in something.

Still, I don’t think anyone has seen him quite like this before. And he is brilliant in all the right ways!

Dylan McDermott is a pretty good looking man, who usually plays characters where this is an intricate part of the role. The Clovehitch Killer is nothing like any of those characters.

He is somewhat charming, but also very boring and smalltown ordinary. Complete with a cell phone on this belt and anonymous clothes and glasses. But damn, does he ever shine through in the very best of ways!

His scenes with the main protagonist, his son, are definitely among the best moments of the movie. The son is portrayed by Charlie Plummer (All the Money in the World), who delivers an intensely strong performance as well.

Screenplay by Clown writer

The Clovehitch Killer was directed by Duncan Skiles and it’s his first actual feature film. Or rather, he did a comedy that was 65 minutes long in 2014, so technically, this is his second.

Duncan Skiles has done several TV movies and episodes (or segments) of other productions, so he is a seasoned director. With The Cloverhitch Killer, he has created a solid horror thriller. Hopefully, he will work more with these genres.

The screenplay for the movies was written by Christopher Ford, who already has several strong productions on his resume. He has worked quite a bit on movies directed by Jon Watts and they often write the scripts together.

They co-wrote the Kevin Bacon movie Cop Car from 2015 and the very creepy horror drama Clown from 2014. Jon Watts then went on to direct Spider-Man: Homecoming, which they both also co-wrote.

The Clovehitch Killer will be out in theaters and on demand from November 16, 2018.

Details

Director: Duncan Skiles
Cast: Charlie Plummer, Dylan McDermott, Samantha Mathis, Madisen Beaty

Plot

A shocking revelation turns a teenage boy’s world upside down in this chilling look at the evil that can lurk below even the most wholesome surface. Tyler Burnside (Charlie Plummer) is a Boy Scout, a volunteer at his local church, and the dutiful son of an upstanding, community leader dad (Dylan McDermott). Only one thing troubles the quiet Kentucky town he lives in: the unsolved murders—in which ten women were brutally tortured and killed by a psychopath known as Clovehitch—that rocked the community more than a decade ago. When Tyler discovers a cache of disturbing images in his father’s possession, he begins to suspect that the man he trusts most in the world may be Clovehitch—and that his deadly rampage may not be over.