There are bad movies, and then there’s Hunting Humans—a film so cheap, so self-serious, and so uncomfortably awkward that it makes you wonder if maybe the real crime was the DVD itself. Written and directed by Kevin Kangas, this 2002 “horror” flick tries to dive into the mind of a serial killer but instead ends up drowning in bad acting, worse editing, and a script that reads like it was written by a guy who just discovered Fight Club but didn’t understand it.
This is supposed to be a film about patterns, obsessions, and the chilling psychology of murder. Instead, it’s about how long you can stare at a suburban mortgage broker in khakis before you die of boredom.
The Killer Who Could Bore You to Death
Our “hero,” Aric Blue (Rick Ganz), is a mild-mannered mortgage broker by day, and a self-congratulatory serial killer by night. He’s got a double life, sure—but it’s less Dexter and more “guy who still brags about his high score on Minesweeper.” Aric spends his time monologuing about “patterns” like a drunk uncle at Thanksgiving who’s just discovered Sudoku. He insists he can’t be caught because he has no pattern—except, of course, he does: wearing smug expressions, lurking around cul-de-sacs, and killing people in ways so dull they should come with a snooze button.
Imagine if Ted Bundy was replaced by a middle manager who listens to too many self-help tapes. That’s Aric Blue.
Enter “Dark,” the Try-Hard Rival
Things get “interesting” (read: slightly less coma-inducing) when Aric discovers a rival serial killer named Dark. Yes, you read that right. His name is Dark. Apparently, “Edgy McStabby” was already taken. Dark leaves notes like a jealous middle schooler and challenges Aric to murder competitions, as if serial killing is now an Olympic event sponsored by Red Bull.
The movie desperately wants this to be a chess game between two criminal masterminds. Instead, it’s checkers played by toddlers who keep eating the pieces. One night Aric kills four people in a theatre to “outdo” Dark’s picnic slayings, and you can’t help but wonder if this entire movie was written after Kangas lost a bet at a Denny’s.
Supporting Characters Who Should’ve Stayed Home
The supporting cast ranges from “cardboard cutout” to “is this person even awake?”
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Barb, Aric’s co-worker turned unwilling pawn, delivers her lines with all the conviction of someone reading IKEA instructions.
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Frank the private investigator keeps switching sides so often he makes professional wrestling look credible.
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Marv, who turns out to be Dark, spends the movie scowling and chewing scenery, like a community theatre Dracula who wandered into the wrong production.
Then there’s Ron Jeremy—oh wait, wrong movie. But honestly, it wouldn’t have been out of place.
A Duel of Dullards
Eventually, Aric and Dark go head-to-head in the woods. This showdown should’ve been electric—two killers finally facing off, blood versus brains. Instead, it looks like two middle-aged dads fighting over the last lawnmower at Home Depot. They grunt, they wrestle, they fire off clunky one-liners. Aric wins not through cunning, but by hiding a stash of guns in the woods like a doomsday prepper who shops at Walmart.
Dark dies. Aric survives. The audience loses.
Technical “Craftsmanship” (and I Use That Word Loosely)
Let’s talk production values.
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Cinematography: half the shots look like they were filmed through a dirty fish tank.
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Editing: jump cuts so jarring you’d think the DVD was skipping.
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Sound design: dialogue alternates between “whispered into a pillow” and “shouted in a bathroom.”
This isn’t indie grit—it’s a student film that somehow escaped into the wild.
The “Philosophy” of Killing
Kevin Kangas clearly thought he was making a profound meditation on evil. Aric narrates his thoughts like he’s auditioning for a TED Talk: “Patterns… everyone has them. Except me. I’m different.”
Except he’s not. He’s the cinematic equivalent of a guy who wears a trench coat in July and tells people he’s “misunderstood.”
Every time Aric lectures about patterns, you want to shake him and say, “Buddy, you’re not Hannibal Lecter. You’re a mortgage broker who just stabbed someone behind a Blockbuster.”
A Cult Following (Because of Course)
Here’s the thing: Hunting Humans somehow developed a cult following. Maybe because it was found in the possession of a real-life murderer, Adam Leroy Lane, which gave the film an unearned aura of menace. But let’s be clear: the scariest thing about this movie is the acting. The fact that anyone could find inspiration in this beige nightmare of a slasher flick is proof that life is more horrifying than art.
The Ending: Loose Ends Everywhere
Aric ties up his “loose ends” by murdering his co-workers and relocating, because nothing screams “patternless” like killing everyone you know in one convenient spree. It’s meant to feel chilling, but it plays like a workplace fantasy gone wrong: “Corporate asked me to stay late again? Fine, I’ll just stab accounting and move to Delaware.”
The last shot isn’t shocking. It isn’t haunting. It’s just merciful—because the movie finally ends.
