Who's the Craziest?

 By Amanda Lawrence Auverigne

            I was watching cable the other day and I noticed that two of my favorite serial killer/horror thrillers were playing on two different channels at the same time. One channel was showing the 2007 remake of "The Hitcher" in which the actor Sean Bean portrayed the toxically psychotic hitchhiker on a murderous cross country rampage. The other station was showing the 2008 remake of  "Prom Night" in which the actor Jonathon Schaech portrayed a psychopathic high school teacher who "crashes" a senior prom in order to reconnect with a former student with whom he had developed a loathsome (and illegal) obsession.

            After about forty-five minutes of random flipping, I began to think about the two psychopathic killers in the films.  As I watched the body counts rise, I started to wonder which of the two was the craziest. Was it the hitchhiker John Ryder or the former teacher turned psychopath Richard Fenton?

            At this point, I decided that in order to determine who was the most mentally unhinged between the two; a type of psychopathic checklist would have to be developed. In short, in order to consider the insanity factor of the two characters, their actions, motives and attitudes portrayed in the films should be examined and compared.  Thus, in order to see who wins the "golden straight jacket" for the craziest, we will look at each character's body count, motive for killing, regard for the authorities, and the chance of a person or persons surviving a random encounter with each of them.

Body Count:  Unknown

We don't know who John Ryder is, where he comes from, where he is going or how many he people has killed during his cross country death trip. 

Reason for Rampage:  None              

Ryder tells one of the clueless teens he terrorizes in the film that he simply "can't" stop. 

Regard for Authority:  None

John Ryder killed a lot of cops in the film. And after he was arrested and taken into custody for ripping a young man in half with a truck, he did not seem concerned about the possibility of being subjected to the death penalty.

Chances of Surviving a Random Encounter:  0 Percent

Let's be realistic. If you happened to meet John Ryder on a dark desolate stretch of desert road and he decided he wanted to kill you, your rate of survival might not be too great.  However, your chances of survival might increase if you don't pick him up.

Body Count: Unknown

Richard Fenton killed at least a dozen people in the film. We also learn that he traveled a few thousand miles from the insane asylum where he had been incarcerated to crash a senior prom. So, we can guess that he probably killed more than a few people during his travels.

Reason for Rampage:  Obsession with former student Donna Keppel.

Fenton's murderous rampage is linked to his obsession with a former student named Donna Keppel. Fenton killed Donna's family and he escaped from a mental hospital years after being incarcerated for the murders.  Fenton killed anyone he perceived as being a threat to his ‘imaginary' relationship with Donna.

Regard for Authority:  None

Fenton killed a few cops. After he murdered Donna's family he was arrested at his place of residence.

Chances of Surviving a Random Encounter:  30 to 50 percent

Fenton displayed the tendency of murdering anyone he perceived as an obstacle to connecting with Donna.  So, in theory your chances of survival would be good if you stay out of his way. However, Fenton also killed people to get stuff he needed to get to his obsession. Like a car, a new identity and a hotel passkey.

         So, with all of this data who can be determined as being the most mentally unbalanced between the two characters?  Who is the craziest? Well, in my opinion the character of John Ryder wins the golden straight jacket.  And he wins for two reasons.  First, he can clearly be perceived as being the most dangerous.  John Ryder is a murdering enigma. He is a man who roamed the highways searching for victims who had no real identity of his own. His profile didn't exist in any of the identification databases available to the law enforcement authorities in the film.  And second, John Ryder killed a lot of people without feeling, thought or concrete motive.  He was able to ‘charm' his victims into trusting him just long enough for them to allow him entry into their vehicles before brutally murdering them.  He used emotion as a tool to lure victims into his murderous web, though it is highly doubtful if he felt any himself. Therefore, John Ryder can be described as an emotionless "killing machine" who had no real regard for morality or the suffering of his many victims.   

            Nevertheless, the character of Richard Fenton was also a psychotic brutal cold-blooded killer.  However, Fenton's insanity was associated with his twisted obsession with his former student named Donna. The objective of Fenton's murderous rampage was to possess Donna at any cost. And to reach his goal, Fenton killed anyone he perceived as being a threat or an obstacle to reconnecting with the object of his obsession.