Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile. (15.)
Directed by Joe Berlinger.
Starring Zac Efron, Lily Collins, Kaya Scodelario, Haley James Osment, Jim Parsons and John Malkovich. 108 mins
That title, and the casting of Zac Efron, suggests that some amount of levity, or ironic distance, is intended in this film about serial killer Ted Bundy. In fact, this is that rare film that does the decent thing by serial killers. There are no tense scenes of lone women taking ill-advised short cuts through woodland, no cleaning up blood-stained crimes scenes and no excruciating autopsies with deadpan witticism exchanged over naked female corpses. The only unpleasantness is the evidence presented in court and the detailed desciptions of his attacks. This is simply the story of a self regarding wally, who killed women.
The film's stated original angle is that this is the Bundy story told through the perspective of his girlfriend, Liz Kendall (Collins.) Except it isn't, not really. It's based on her book but she largely disappears from the second half of the film. Its novelty is to tell the story as an innocent man trapped in the system tale, which is how she experienced it, at least initially. When he is first arrested for attempted assault it is very credible that he was an entirely innocent man caught up in a series of unfortunate coincidences or the victim of an unreasonable police persecution. We share Liz's outrage and disbelief as various law enforcement agencies indite this charming man for a series of abductions and murders.
Efron is ideal for the lead role. He's better looking than Bundy but not ridiculously so and Bundy's defining trait was being handsome and charismatic enough that people couldn't accept he was capable of these monstrous deeds. In the film, he seems convinced of his own innocence in the face of all the evidence. The only possible flaw in the film is that because it is so concerned with not glorifying him and not being exploitive of his gruesome deeds, that it perhaps soft-peddles his crimes. We never really see Bundy's mask slip. It's a Jekyll and Hyde story, without the Hyde.
Directed by Joe Berlinger.
Starring Zac Efron, Lily Collins, Kaya Scodelario, Haley James Osment, Jim Parsons and John Malkovich. 108 mins
That title, and the casting of Zac Efron, suggests that some amount of levity, or ironic distance, is intended in this film about serial killer Ted Bundy. In fact, this is that rare film that does the decent thing by serial killers. There are no tense scenes of lone women taking ill-advised short cuts through woodland, no cleaning up blood-stained crimes scenes and no excruciating autopsies with deadpan witticism exchanged over naked female corpses. The only unpleasantness is the evidence presented in court and the detailed desciptions of his attacks. This is simply the story of a self regarding wally, who killed women.
The film's stated original angle is that this is the Bundy story told through the perspective of his girlfriend, Liz Kendall (Collins.) Except it isn't, not really. It's based on her book but she largely disappears from the second half of the film. Its novelty is to tell the story as an innocent man trapped in the system tale, which is how she experienced it, at least initially. When he is first arrested for attempted assault it is very credible that he was an entirely innocent man caught up in a series of unfortunate coincidences or the victim of an unreasonable police persecution. We share Liz's outrage and disbelief as various law enforcement agencies indite this charming man for a series of abductions and murders.
Efron is ideal for the lead role. He's better looking than Bundy but not ridiculously so and Bundy's defining trait was being handsome and charismatic enough that people couldn't accept he was capable of these monstrous deeds. In the film, he seems convinced of his own innocence in the face of all the evidence. The only possible flaw in the film is that because it is so concerned with not glorifying him and not being exploitive of his gruesome deeds, that it perhaps soft-peddles his crimes. We never really see Bundy's mask slip. It's a Jekyll and Hyde story, without the Hyde.
