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Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes (2019)
Meh ... just alright
I'm fascinated with serial killers, though I'm certainly not a groupie or fan. I am just intrigued by their psychological makeup and what makes them so different from normal human beings. I knew quite a bit about Bundy already as I was in my late teens when he was executed. This documentary didn't really seem to shed any new light on either his crimes or Bundy himself.
I think it has been hyped -- especially by Netflix. Even though I'm intrigued with true crime stories, I scare easily and often can't sleep after watching them. I didn't find this particularly scary at all. Perhaps if you had never heard of Bundy, it might be chilling -- but anyone familiar with his crimes will probably find it a tad boring. You can certainly watch this alone, but you may need some nap breaks because it gets a little repetitive at times.
I also didn't like the choice to use a series of flashes of pictures in some scenes. I guess it was an artistic decision, but I felt that it was a little bit manipulative. Almost like subliminal messages. There were some disturbing images -- but not necessarily connected or relevant to Bundy's actual crimes -- but they were flashed so quickly that the conscious mind wouldn't be able to really process them. I'm sure that the intent was to make the viewer uneasy at a subconscious level in an attempt to make it more dramatic and "scary". I find it to be a disingenuous method and am suspect of anyone who would use that technique instead of just focusing on the facts of the crimes. That sensationalist stuff isn't really needed.
Overall, if you've never heard of Bundy, you might find it intriguing. If you already know about Bundy, it might be worth it to hear the few minutes of Bundy talking on tape -- but not much else. Even what little we hear of Bundy's tapes, though, don't really tell you much about himself because he was a liar and manipulator until the very end.
On Pointe (2018)
Eh, just okay
I'm a sucker for the Lifetime movie type, but this one just falls flat. The fault is completely in the script. I could take some less than stellar acting (and there is plenty of that). I'm okay with low budget filming. I could even tolerate the repetitive soundtrack and the fact that most of the songs aren't even a match for what was going on in the movie. (Did they just buy the rights to one album and play the entire thing for background music?) What I can't forgive is the utter lack of character development, the lack of an actual, sensible plot and the way that it was just all magically resolved in the last few minutes in a way that would never happen in real life. Shame on whoever wrote this screenplay. Their mother should have told them to be realistic about their career goals and they should have listened to her.
Abducted in Plain Sight (2017)
There has to be more to the story
I found this documentary fascinating. I can't say that I enjoyed it (who could enjoy this type of subject?), but it did keep my attention. It was also surprising that the subjects (especially the parents) were as honest about their shortcomings as they were. Still, the whole thing just doesn't seem that believable. It seems like there must be some part of the story we are not getting. And if they were truthful about the horrible things they admitted to already, whatever they are hiding must be pretty bad. I suspect that they may have been pressured by the LDS church to keep things hushed up and to keep the authorities out of it.
I guess I'm glad that the children were somehow able to forgive the parents, but I really don't think that the parents deserved forgiveness. They made so many horrible mistakes and were more concerned about the town gossip and protecting their "reputation" that they literally put their daughter's life on the line. I guess they are lucky that the predator in this case wasn't a killer. It could have turned out so much worse than it did. But, I guess they were easy targets as he was a closet homosexual and she was a sexually frustrated wife of a homosexual. Still, any parent that puts sex over their own kid's safety is a very lousy parent.
And that brother of the predator seems like a lowlife. I have a brother and I love him dearly -- but I'd still turn him in if I knew he was a pedophile and had a child in his possession. I might cover up for him for minor crimes -- but not kidnapping and sexual abuse of a child. What kind of soulless lowlife can just casually mention that he always knew his brother was a pedophile because he molested their sister? If I were the authorities, I'd be keeping an eye on him. Maybe "B" let his brother have a turn when Jan was drugged up. It wouldn't surprise me.
Overall it is interesting, but you'll be angry and horrified that people like this -- predator and parents -- exist in the world. But, it definitely is a testament to the fact that the truth is stranger than fiction.