Man Bites Dog (1992, Rémy Belvaux & André Bonzel & Benoit Poelvoorde) (Patreon)

45/100

Second viewing, last seen during its U.S. theatrical release. Seemed conceptually flimsy to me at the time, and still does, though apparently that's at least in part because it's parodying a specific Belgian TV doc series. "What if a serial killer were the subject of one such episode?" might make for a superb black-comedy sketch, or even a first-rate short; at feature length, it's just the same blithe horror again and again, eventually escalating from murder to rape + murder. Poelvoorde's oddly weedy charisma provokes some uncomfortable laughs, and the film works best as a showcase for his cheerfully amoral performance, really coming to life when Ben's at his most irrationally petulant, e.g. getting offended when nobody wants to drive two hours for mussels with him. But the film crew's growing complicity just sorta happens without being explored or interrogated, making the satire feel increasingly shallow. Indeed, Man Bites Dog might as well take place during the Purge*, since nobody onscreen ever expresses a hint of disapproval—Rémy gets weepy when his sound guy is killed in the crossfire, and blood-spattered dinner guests clearly aren't thrilled that Ben accidentally blew the host's head off while testing his new holster's freedom of mobility, but that's just personal loss in both cases, same as if the deceased had suffered a heart attack. Dark, to be sure, but not in a way that I find compelling on repeat. Only when Ben studies footage of a murder attempt that went awry, like a boxer watching past bouts in order to spot potential weaknesses, does the film take full advantage of its absurdist premise. More often, it's an ultra-glib Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer featuring a comparable degree of hard-to-stomach casual violence, which no thanks. 

* DISCLAIMER: I have seen none of the Purge movies.