Written by: Ashtyn at 9:27 am
Writer:Christopher Ryan, Wood Dickinson
Director: Rich Ambler
Cast:Bo Svenson, Cathy Barnett, Jeannine Hutchings, Scott Cordes, Rusty Sneary
Rating: R
Studio: Lionsgate
Release Date:June 24, 2008
When I heard this movie was coming out I was really looking forward to watching it. I realize now that just because something sounds good in theory, it does not mean it will end up being as good as it sounded originally. Raising Jeffrey Dahmer is one of those movies. Serial killer buffs are aware that Dahmer had many ups and downs in his life prior to his killing spree that could have made for an interesting movie. The majority of these things were either brushed over or left out completely. It was disappointing at best, and boring at worst.
I understand that low budget films face obstacles. Generally speaking, I do not expect the world from these films. However, good acting can make up for things like a lack of special effects and other things that bigger budgets can buy. Raising Jeffrey Dahmer didn’t really have good acting though. It didn’t really have much of anything, to be honest.
Release Information:
From what I understand this movie was based on the book of the same name by Dahmer’s father, Lionel. I haven’t read the book, so I cannot comment on whether the movie is better or worse than the book. However, after seeing the movie, I seriously hope the book offered a better read because there wasn’t much to see here. Unless you like to torture yourself by watching bad movies, this won’t be your cup of tea.
You may be able to find this in stores, depending on where you live. Lionsgate made this available through DVD on June 24, 2008. I have not come across it in stores where I live, but it’s possible that other stores have it available. If you are looking for it and cannot find it, Amazon currently has it in stock. You can pick this up at Amazon for $18.49. It comes with free shipping if you spend more than $25 for your total order.
The Raising Jeffrey Dahmer Plot
Before I begin the actual review, it’s important to remember that this movie is not so much about the murderer, as it is about raising the murderer. In the aftermath of the criminal prosecution of Dahmer (as played by Rusty Sneary), Lionel (Scott Cordes) and his wife Shari (Cathy Barnett) look at how they raised Jeff (as his father calls him) to see if there was anything recognizable that could have pointed to the man that he had become.
Raising Jeffrey Dahmer looks at a few short days in the life of Lionel and Shari Dahmer when they find out that Lionel’s son, Jeffrey is a sadistic serial killer. Lionel, a chemist, is alerted that something is wrong with his son. The police will not give him any details, instead telling Lionel to call the station and find out that way. When he does, he learns that his son is being charged with multiple counts of murder. The reaction of fear, torment, and questioning by Lionel is painfully obvious. To put it mildly, this guy makes Susan Lucci look like a multiple Oscar winner. These few minutes of over-dramatic tediousness really set the pace for the film that is to come.
The flashbacks don’t really show anything of interest. If anything, if the story is true to life, then the only thing that the flashbacks show is that Lionel Dahmer had issues with common sense, child rearing, and confrontation. What you see in these flashbacks is Jeffrey mutilating animals, being an irresponsible drunk, and carving (or painting) satanic symbols and pentagrams into his furniture and walls. You also see him living in homes with weird odors and having a strong interest in the male sex, which he tried to hide way too hard, to no avail. The movie leaves out a lot of details about Dahmer and his home life, but these flashbacks pave the way down serial killer lane, if you’re going by statistics. Jeffrey was not given any (or enough) help (according to the film) and before Lionel and Shari knew it, it was too late.
The film tries to make things interesting by adding in the onslaught of media that attempt to do everything short of breaking down Lionel’s front door to get him outside, so he will make a statement. They even claimed that he abused Jeffrey, something that was appalling to Lionel, even though Shari told him to take it easy. Of course, when the wicked stepmother shoe was on the other foot, Shari was not as calm as when the allegations were pointed at Lionel.
Unfortunately, nothing about this film worked. I mean nothing. None of the actors stood out as memorable, or even capable of their roles. The flashback scenes were more annoying than anything and if this is the way the story really went down, it’s more pathetic and sad than I ever realized. However, it doesn’t make a good movie.
Storyline/Plot: 
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:
Audio/Visual:
I expect more from an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 with anamorphic widescreen. While there were moments of clarity, I found more problems in this visual quality than were necessary. There was some blur, some noise, and some compression errors. Colors had a tendency to be choppy and dull at times, and the noisy, glaring (seizure inducing) flashback sequences that were littered through the film, were enough to make me want to give up altogether.
The audio comes in with a Dolby Digital Stereo track with Closed Captioning and subtitles available in Spanish. The sound had a tendency to be off track at times, sounding a little screechy on occasion. Volume toggling was only necessary when the audio took it upon itself to be overly loud and annoying, which was rare. Otherwise, it was fine, though still less than average in quality.
Visual: 
Audio:
Bonus Features:
I just have to say that I am thankful that there were not too many special features available on this disc. Usually a bad movie comes with 700 special features, but Lionsgate spared me and only put a few mediocre special features to go with this mediocre film. Things in the special feature department begin with movie trailers. The trailers are all for future or recent Lionsgate releases. This is probably the best of the special features section, if you want to call it that.
The other options are a somewhat pointless director’s commentary, and a stills gallery. If you happen to be a fan of this movie, you might find the commentary and gallery to be of more interest than I did, but if you’re like me, you probably won’t even find a reason to crack these open at all.
Bonus Features:
Bottom Line:
I rarely say this, but this movie isn’t worth the film that it was printed on. Don’t bother picking it up because it’s a complete waste of time. If you have to watch it, rent it because you aren’t going to want to own it. If you’re that starved for entertainment, read a book or go watch some paint dry. It will be more entertaining, I swear. It will also save you some money and keep you from wasting your time on this drivel.
Overall Rating:
Technorati Tags: Movie, DVD Review, Serial Killer, Crime, Murder, Homosexual, Jeffrey Dahmer, Jeff, True Story, Acid, Drunk, Convicted, Raising Jeffrey Dahmer
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Written by Ashtyn - Visit Website
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Ashtyn Evans is a writer, advocate, free thinker, and all around cynical person. Always quick to find the negative in anything pop culture, she loves being a part of that which she despises. Ashtyn and Dominick own numerous blogs together, as well as a full-time writing business. In her spare time she is a full-time college student studying History and Psychology. She plans to one day give up her freelance career and be a full-time blogger, novelist, and domestic goddess. She can be contacted for writing projects, fan mail, or just to say hi. She really is friendlier than we make her look.
