Berdella
North East Film Group
R1 DVD
Web: http://www.bobberdella.com/
When you look at the world of horror films from vampires to
werewolves, ghosts to aliens, the reality is that the most horrid and
terrifying story of all is the human story. Only human beings torture and kill
for pleasure and these tales are the most confronting. Bob Berdella is not a
serial killer who is especially well known, however, between 1984 and 1988 he
terrified Kansas city by kidnapping, torturing and
then killing men he found in the local gay community to satisfy his
uncontrollable sadistic urges.
The film Berdella is a low budget B grade film
which at times seem to dwell on the viciousness and violence of Berdella
without offering much insight. There is no real background to the origins of Berdella’s madness nor on his
trial and imprisonment. The film ends when one of his victims escapes and we
can obviously conclude he will be caught. I would have liked to see a lot more
exploration of the reasons behind Berdella’s killing
spree. It is unusual to find a gay serial killer and as some have mentioned,
his sexuality while shown in the film, is not really explored nor his motives
examined. However it should be said that the film does create a suspenseful
mood and evokes the time and environment in which Berdella lived and committed
his crimes.
Berdella was to most a middle aged eccentric who operated an
occult curio shop "Bob's Bazaar Bizarre," at the Westport Flea
Market. His double life was only exposed
after a wounded man wearing nothing but a dog collar escaped from the
second-floor window of Berdella's Hyde Park home.
Soon Berdella’s collection of trophies including polaroid pictures and skulls as well as extensive
documentation of each kill was uncovered and his was on trial for his life. His
was convicted of killing six men, injecting them with animal tranquilizers and
then torturing them to death. Berdella died in prison from a heart attack in
1992.
This is a low budget film so the acting and filming is average
that being said Seth Correa is convincing as Berdella and the brutality of the
torture depicted is realistic. It is an interesting and confronting
exploration of the violent crimes of a lesser known killer.
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