Category Archives: Serial Killer

2013, Abduction, Dark, Detective, Drama, FBI, Flirting, Gay theme, Grim, Lawyers, Love Story, Made For TV, Mental Illness, Occasional gore, Psychological Thriller, Revenge, Sadism, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Torture, Violent, Wonderful acting

The Following (2013)

Leave a comment

From NetFlix:

When escaped serial killer Joe Carroll goes on a new killing spree, reclusive former FBI agent Ryan Hardy is called in, having captured Carroll nine years ago. Hardy soon discovers that Carroll has a loyal following of killers ready to terrorize.

Fifteen TV episodes of psychosis, ugly violence, and really good acting offer you a guilty pleasure. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Kevin Bacon always delivers a great performance, including this gory series. James Purefoy makes a great psychotic and insidiously clever villain. Take note, in addition, of the trio of very young adults (Valorie Curry, Nico Tortorella, and Adan Canto) who provide a sadistic bisexual mini-drama on their own. Nothing is nice in this series except possibly Kyle Catlett who plays the little boy Joey.

Stream along with NetFlix and expect to be absorbed.

2013, Abduction, Serial Killer, Suspense, Thriller, Violent

The Call (2013)

Leave a comment

From Netflix:

When an abducted teenage girl makes a frantic call from the trunk of a serial killer’s speeding car, she connects with a sympathetic 911 operator who’s dealt with the perpetrator in the past.

Hold onto your seats! Halle Berry leads us through one of the most suspenseful film trips I have ever taken. Trying to catch a serial killer who has just abducted his latest victim leads from one exciting episode to another. This panicked killer is not squeamish so there is a fair amount of ugly violence.

Poor Michael Imperioli (who played Christopher Moltisanti in “The Sopranos”) tries to help the abducted girl. Oops!

Morris Chestnut plays Halle’s police officer boyfriend. He played Ryan Nichols in the 2011 TV version of “V”.

Michael Eklund’s portrayal of the serial killer is one of the more original such portrayals that I have seen. He is anything but calm, cook, and collected.

Do not watch this thriller too close to your bedtime!

British Mystery Series, Medical Theme, Nothing special, Scottish, Serial Killer, Stalker, Suspense

Taggart (2003)

Leave a comment

From Netflix:

“There’s been a murder!” And with those words, the detectives of Glasgow’s Maryhill CID unit spin into action in this collection of episodes from the long-running U.K. television drama.

Somewhat ordinary long-running Scottish murder detective series. Each episode is complicated enough to be interesting. There is no gore , but rather plain old greed, lust, jealousy, drugs and all the rest of the motives in the motive catalog. Often, instead of serial killers, there are multiple murders that are related. In fact (murder aside) there is not a lot of violence in the series.

Nothing special, but watchable.

2003, British Mystery Series, Clever Plot, Detective, DNA, Dysfunctional Lives, Marital Infidelity, Mental Illness, Serial Killer

DNA (2003)

Leave a comment

From NetFlix:

After recovering from a mental breakdown, brilliant investigator Joe Donovan joins the Manchester Forensic Investigations Unit. But his past continues to haunt him as he solves crimes with a fervor that causes tension between him and his wife.

Tom Conti and Samantha Bond appear in a cleverly written British detective series available from NetFlix as 2 discs that represent the only year (2003) that the series played. These 5 episodes may also be streamed from NetFlix.

In this particular story the novelty is that the DNA expert Joe Donovan experiences night-time wanderings which he cannot recall the next day. These night-time travels are connected with murders and seem to involve Donovan himself.

Enjoyable British mystery series with its own original gimmick!

Author, Based on a Book, British Mystery Series, Detective, Made For TV, Nuclear energy, P.D. James, Serial Killer, Suicide

Devices and Desires (1991)

Leave a comment

From NetFlix:

Roy Marsden stars as Scotland Yard sleuth Adam Dalgliesh in this epic miniseries based on the popular mystery novel by P.D. James, a tale that also features a brief appearance by a young Kate Beckinsale. After inheriting a seaside cottage from his aunt, Dalgliesh escapes the city for a little R&R, only to find himself neck-deep in a string of serial killings. Can he expose the killer before his vacation is completely ruined?

Filmed in 1991, this 6-episode P.D. James mystery series can be streamed from NetFlix with subtitles. Somewhat ordinary, at least the story is neither gritty, grim, nor graphic.

Roy Marsden has played Adam Dalgliesh in many of these P.D. James book adaptations. As an extra treat we get to shudder at Gemma Jones’ cold steel-grays eyes.

Throw in some clandestine romances, some landlord-tenant grief, a struggling mother-less family with 3 children, and nuclear reactor intrigue and you get a watchable 6 hours of entertainment.

2007, Canadian Mystery Series, Clever Plot, Crime thriller, Crude Talk, Detective, DO NOT MISS, Dysfunctional Lives, Gritty, Made For TV, Marital Infidelity, Mental Illness, Murder Investigation, Psychological Thriller, Revenge, Serial Killer, Suspense, Thriller, TV Series, Violent

Durham County (2007)

Leave a comment

From NetFlix:

Eager for a new beginning, Detective Mike Sweeney (Hugh Dillon) transfers to Durham County with his wife, Audrey (Helene Joy) — in recovery from breast cancer — and two daughters. But there’s trouble in suburban paradise. In particular, a serial killer is on the loose. As Sweeney gets sucked into the ugly case, his suspicions turn to his neighbor Ray (Justin Louis), a man he has known since high school, in this disturbing crime drama series.

As far as I can tell “Durham County” is available from NetFlix only via streaming. There are three seasons beginning with 2007. Each season consists of 6 episodes. After I finished watching Season One I was shaking with excitement. And it gets better.

Each season features a (serial) killer who lives among the investigators as an accepted or even highly admired member of society while cleverly disguising his or her proclivities. You may learn who the killer is immediately or it may take some time to discover. But you will know who that killer is a long time before the police.

You can find a season of all the summaries in the Wikipedia article.

“Gritty” is a category of film that implies the following:

  • Violent and often creepy or gruesome murders
  • involving most often a serial killer
  • who may or may not get away with the crime or crimes
  • and possibly causing the wrong person to be convicted.
  • Only very intelligent killers may apply for the role.

Most British TV detective series are “gritty”. “Durham County” is almost British in that it was produced in Canada. Hence there are no British accents.

Season One is so suspenseful and the serial killer so clever and dissimulates so well that he fools almost everyone that I could hardly wait to see each of the 6 episodes. From the very beginning we know who the killer is: he is a plumber and the former best friend of the detective. Both men’s lives are troubled: violent mental illnes plagues the killer; the detective’s wife almost died of cancer. For both men their marriage is in trouble. Both men have one or more children whose lives are difficult. No one believes that the plumber could be guilty because he is the town’s athletic hero.

If you like “gritty” then this is a DO NOT MISS!!!

2004, Barely Acceptable Trash, Car Chase, Grim, Imperfect, Serial Killer, Suspense, Violent

Highwaymen (2004)

Leave a comment

From NetFlix:

Wheelchair-bound serial killer Fargo (Colm Feore), whose tricked-out green Cadillac serves as his deadly weapon, rages loose on the highway, and the only man who can stop his rampage is Rennie (James Caviezel), the husband of a woman he’s murdered. When Rennie teams up with a survivor of one of Fargo’s rampages (Rhona Mitra), the pair vows to stop him before he flattens anyone else. Frankie Faison co-stars in this deadly game of cat-and-mouse.

In this car chase film the only novelty is that one of the chasers is an automotive serial killer who runs over people for the fun of it. If this sounds like a film to skip, you are absolutely correct.

You might recognize Rhona Mitra as one of the temporary employees in “Boston Legal”.

Try another film.

1980, Based on a Book, Based on true facts, Crude Talk, Dark, Detective, Gay theme, Grim, Mostly About Sex, Murder Investigation, Nudity, Plot Twist, Psychological Drama, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Transvestite theme, Violent, Vulgar

Cruising (1980)

Leave a comment

From NetFlix:

After a serial killer brutally murders several gay men in New York’s S&M and leather districts, cop Steve Burns (Al Pacino) goes undercover on the streets, where he must learn the complex rules of the underground gay subculture if he’s to catch the psycho. Karen Allen co-stars as Burns’s girlfriend in this gritty 1980 thriller, which sparked protests from gay rights groups at the time of its release but has since developed a minor cult status.

“Lurid” is the first adjective that comes to mind. The Stonewall riots occurred in 1959. By 1980 the gay movement was strong enough to protest this film which depicts an aberrant side of gay culture. Indeed the strong gay protests are described in the Wikipedia article about the film.

Expect “grungy” scenes in this cult classic with a wonderfully ambiguous ending.

1997, Abduction, British Mystery Series, Car Chase, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime, Detective, Disturbing Image, Eccentric Detective, Grim, Gritty, Kidnapping, Lawyers, Made For TV, Mental Illness, Murder Investigation, Nudity, Occasional gore, Prison, Psychological Thriller, Rape, Revenge, Sadism, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Torture, TV Series, Violent

Touching Evil (1997)

Leave a comment

From NetFlix:

After suffering head trauma from a shooting, moody, job-obsessed Detective Inspector Dave Creegan of the organized and serial crime unit heads off some of England’s most deviant and deadly offenders by creeping inside the criminal psyche.

Robson Green plays the DI Dave Creegan in this British detective TV series. His character is single-minded, isolated, and socially awkward. As is often the case in British detective shows, the crimes are usually violent and involve some ugly scenes. Indeed each episode develops side by side both Creegan’s personality difficulties as well as the crime du jour. You will not relax watching these plots but you will probably not be able to stop watching despite the suspense.

After he made this series, Robson Green then starred in Wire In The Blood in which he portrays the exact same personality, the only difference being that in this later series he ia cast as a free-lance psychologist specializing in the criminal mind.

Both “Touching Evil” and “Wire in the Blood” provide tense, suspenseful viewing that (providing your nerves hold up) you don’t want to miss.

2009, Psychological Thriller, Serial Killer, Suspense, Violent

The Stepfather (2009)

Leave a comment

From NetFlix:

In this spine-tingling remake of the 1987 thriller, a series of mysterious events leads teenager Michael Harding to suspect that his mother’s new boyfriend may be a dangerous serial killer known for preying on families.

Ever since I watched Dylan Walsh as Dr. Sean McNamara in the TV series “Nip/Tuck”, I have hoped to see his career advance. At the very least he succeeds in this film in playing a cleverly creepy serial killer. This is no spoiler because you know from the very beginning that his “hobby” is inserting himself as a new stepfather in a family whose parents have recently divorced and when things don’t work out then killing the entire family. In this film you watch him try again. Tension consists in watching Michael, the oldest son in the new family, little by little coming to suspect that something is wrong. Along the way quite a few people are murdered. You will recognize the first husband Jay as the actor Jon Tenney who plays the husband of “The Closer” on TV. Finally at the very end of the film an actress has a brief cameo appearance as a mom with two boys in a big box store. That actress also played in many episodes of “Nip/Tuck”.

Just sit back (you can’t relax during this film) and hold on tight.