Review: Netflix's Ted Bundy documentary & movie, plus book recommendations

This isn't exactly a book review per se, but it's my blog so I can write about whatever I want! I recently watched both the Conversations with a Killer, the Netflix docuseries on Ted Bundy, and the Ted Bundy film on Netflix, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.

Still from Extremely Wicked

Both have gotten some flack from critics, especially the film, which some allege romanticizes Bundy. You can see some examples of this discussion here and here. I can understand why it comes off this way for some people; you don't really see anything of Ted's crimes until the very end, and you don't really even hear much about them - the focus is decidedly on his girlfriend Liz and his home life. If you ignore who he is, it almost looks like a romance for the first half. But, I think that's arguably the strength of the movie.

We didn't need another Ted the serial killer movie; it's been done. We didn't need more information about his crimes; it's everywhere. We didn't really need this movie either, but it added another dimension to the story. I thought it did a good job of portraying Liz as another of Ted's victims - I personally can't imagine the lasting damage to her psyche he must have done, and the film does a good job of showing this. And those moments that could be seen as romanticizing him? I personally felt they were a little chilling - looking at them with the eye of hindsight, knowing who he is and what he was doing in his time away from her - some of them felt uncomfortable and creepy, not romantic, because I couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking.


Incidentally, the film is based on Liz's book, which I actually read years ago. It was as very different perspective on a serial killer than any I have read, before or since. It's a reminder of the trauma they do to everyone around them, not just the victims. If you can get your hands on a copy, I'd recommend it. I believe I borrow mine through inter-library loan from my college library, so that may be an option.

It's also, in my opinion, a good reminder that not everyone who is dangerous is obviously dangerous. Most of what I have read about Ted Bundy indicates that this romantic version of him was who he was - most of the time - in his regular life. Yes, he sometimes had a short temper, yes he was egocentric, etc. But he was also charming. I think it's good for people to know and understand that.

The Conversations with a Killer docuseries was actually released first, and I watched it first. The documentary is made up of recordings of conversations with Bundy prior to his execution, interspersed with news coverage and interviews with others. It didn't really tell me anything I didn't already know about Bundy, but it was interesting (and chilling) to hear it in his own words. It was also interesting to hear how, in some cases, his statements were word for word what I have read in materials on psychological profiling. I knew that he was a very important part of our understanding of serial killers, but I didn't realize how much of the language profilers use (at least publicly) came word for word from his interviews.

It is again enlightening to hear such horrible things talked about so matte-of-factly and by someone who sounds so normal. He doesn't sound delusional or crazy. But, despite his efforts to talk about a hypothetical third person who isn't him, there's no escaping what he did to those women.

So, overall I think both are worth watching. I think it's important for the watcher to remember the reality of who he was, though, and not forget that the charming Ted was only one half of who he was, and the less important half at that. I think the judge at his sentencing really encapsulated this case when he talked about not only the horrors of what was done to the victims, but the waste of what Bundy could have been had he not made the choices that he did. I imagine it's a sentiment Bundy's girlfriend Liz still thinks about.

If you're still interested in Bundy after all this, I can recommend the book that I view to be the definitive discussion of him - The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule. I've mentioned it before on this blog, because it really is a master example of the genre. Rule, who like Liz actually knew Bundy before he was arrested, really delves into the psychology of Ted as well as his crimes. Well worth a read if you're interested in Bundy specifically or serial killers more generally.