[real life] Serial killer films

[DaveCinzano]

I see that Snowtown is now out on release. It's pretty grim going, but powerful, about this odd group of people in some shitty Australian town who get caught up in a spiral of brutal, nasty murders. I thought it was excellent, but then I have a thing for grim going, brutal Australian nastiness.

In a way it reminded me of how good Dahmer was, with Jeremy Renner in the lead role. Whilst it didn't gloss over the horror of Jeffrey Dahmer's killings, it also manages to put something of a human face on him.

Then there's the no-frills-but-solid TV movies like Manhunt, about Richard Ramirez, the Night Stalker; and the minor theatricals such as Karla, about the Homolkas. On the other hand there are the heaps of crap like Gacy and Rampage...

So, any recommendations, any you want to warn the rest of us off?

 

[DJ Squelch]

I did a list on IMDB a few months ago - http://www.imdb.com/list/RFwseJfj49w/

I thought - The Capture Of The Green River Killer was particularly good, told from two points of view, one from the detective trying to track him down & one from one of his victims and how she ends up drifting into prostitution. Great soundtrack too.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Good work on the list!

Ones on there that I've seen and rate would be Citizen X, 10 Rillington Place, Henry, Summer Of Sam, Boston Strangler; those I don't think are utter bilge would be The Hillside Strangler, DC Sniper (Charles S Dutton FTW!), See No Evil... Zodiac's a bit pants though, and Evilenko is rubbish. The Caine/Lewis Jack The Ripper is silly and very watchable!

 

[DaveCinzano]

...Surely Elephant is about spree killers not serial killers?

 

[DJ Squelch]

the list is "real life serial killers & murderers" and yes, there's plenty of tosh on it and I admit I haven't seen everything listed there.
I'd kill (no pun intended) to see the The Atlanta Child Murders series again, that scared the hell out of me when I saw it in the 80s. Great cast too, Morgan Freeman, James Earl Jones, Martin Sheen etc.
Alas no DVD, torrent or youtube clip seems to exist of it.

 

[DaveCinzano]

You tease! As you say, looks like it's got an excellent cast, too.

One that's not on your list is The Manson Family, which tries to be arty, but ends up mostly wanky, though is still worth a look at.

 

[Ranu]

Citizen X

http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0112681/

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

Definitely Citizen X
Memories of Murder (a Korean one)

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

oh, and The Chaser (another Korean one)

 

[DaveCinzano]

oh, and The Chaser (another Korean one)

Ah yes, good call, I'd forgotten it was based on a real life weirdo.

 

[Orang Utan]

anyone seen Bundy?
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0284929/
i was surprised at how good this was.
it reminded me a bit of American Psycho cos it was funny and it emphasised the fact that only was Bundy a murderer, but he was a total dick as well.
its funniness could be regarded as in poor taste, but i think it's a great film all the same.

 

[MellySingsDoom]

You tease! As you say, looks like it's got an excellent cast, too.

One that's not on your list is The Manson Family, which tries to be arty, but ends up mostly wanky, though is still worth a look at.

Yeah, I got hold of a rough cut of this in 1999 - I remember being pretty unimpressed with it, by and large...

 

[DaveCinzano]

anyone seen Bundy?

I shall check it out, cheers.

 

[rekil]

Doctor Petiot. What a fucking fucker.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Doctor Petiot. What a fucking fucker.

Sounds like a perfect rotter

 

[Reno]

Terrence Malick's Badlands

Monster, though the two Nick Broomfield documentaries on Aileen Wuornos are better.

The killer in Dirty Harry was based on the Zodiac killer.

The serial killer Ed Gein inspired a lot of serial killer films, from Psycho to, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre to The Silence of the Lambs. The film Deranged sticks more closely to the real case and there are a number of other horror biopics that use his real name.

Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck have also inspired several films, most famously The Honeymoon Killers.

 

[ska invita]

Terrence Malick's Badlands

words out of my mouth

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

Ah yes, good call, I'd forgotten it was based on a real life weirdo.

and a right disappointing ending (as in not the ending you wanted) but I'm not going to say too much or I'll give it away

 

[Reno]

I thought the ending of The Chaser was excellent.

 

[Bakunin]

Creepiest. Dude. Ever.

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

I thought the ending of The Chaser was excellent.

Yes it was, but not in the way you expect (or not in the way an American audience would expect)

 

[spliff]

I use subtitles when I watch the tellybox.

Last programme I watched came up at the end, titles by "ITFC -Charles Manson"

I think i'd change my first name to Felix or something.

 

[davesgcr]

10 Rillington Place - Attenborough as Christie - dark !

 

[spliff]

Christie was a projectionist at the Electric Cinema, Portobello Road.

And so, for a time, was I

 

[Bakunin]

Christie was a projectionist at the Electric Cinema, Portobello Road.

And so, for a time, was I

He also spent World War Two working as a volunteer policeman, believe it or not.

 

[davesgcr]

Slighlty off topic - but check out 10.Rillington.place.com

(lots of period detail and mapping)

Christie was a wartime "Special Constable" - but I presume he was paid , and too old for active service. Lots of books on this. Ludovic Kennedy's being the most readable.

 

[Bakunin]

Slighlty off topic - but check out 10.Rillington.place.com

(lots of period detail and mapping)

Christie was a wartime "Special Constable" - but I presume he was paid , and too old for active service. Lots of books on this. Ludovic Kennedy's being the most readable.

He was also, for the benefit of those who may still think that the death penalty is a good idea, the star prosecution witness at the trial of Timothy Evans.

 

[Orang Utan]

the friend whose spare room i'm staying in is a relative of timothy evans!

 

[Bakunin]

the friend whose spare room i'm staying in is a relative of timothy evans!

It was an outright tragedy, the Evans case. From my understanding of the case, Evans perhaps wasn't a very bright chap and not a sophisticated or worldly young man either. He made easy work for the prosecution and would certainly have been no match for experienced QC's, especially not with Christie aiding them (doubtless for his own very dark motives).

 

[DaveCinzano]

anyone seen Bundy?
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0284929/
i was surprised at how good this was.
it reminded me a bit of American Psycho cos it was funny and it emphasised the fact that only was Bundy a murderer, but he was a total dick as well.
its funniness could be regarded as in poor taste, but i think it's a great film all the same.

I watched it after your recommendation and I rather liked it. A total dick indeed!