Written by: Elizabeth Kendall (based on the book "The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy" by), Michael Werwie
Directed by: Joe Berlinger
Starring: Lily Collins, Zac Efron, Angela Sarafyan, Kaya Scodelario, Haley Joel Osment, John Malkovich, Jim Parsons
Rated: R
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Plot
Tells the story of mass-murderer Ted Bundy but seen through the viewpoint of his girlfriend who believes he's innocent.
Verdict
While we know who Ted Bundy is now, this movie is from the viewpoint then. Ted seems like a nice guy, and he's a great boyfriend to Liz. When he's accused of a crime he vehemently denies it and we get a glimpse of how charismatic he was, able to spin the courtroom and public opinion to his favor. It's an indictment of the court system because not everyone would get away with his shenanigans.
Watch it.
Review
It's surprising how nice Ted seems. We only get the highlights, seeing what Liz saw. There's no way she could have known what Ted was doing. His long nights were attributed to studying for law school.
While we know, we wonder what will it take for Liz to begin suspecting Ted. He's feeding her what we know are lies, but it seems plausible. Ted insists it's a frame up. It's interesting that he maintains his innocence despite escaping custody.
Liz wants to believe him, but there are many reasons not to. Many women assume Ted couldn't have done those crimes because he's too handsome. That's what this movie does well, it gets into the psychology of how we view heinous criminals. And how we view criminals that don't look like criminals. Efron is a great choice for this because he's charming. He, as Ted, got the benefit of the doubt through the entire movie because he doesn't seem creepy at all. It's privilege. That's a double standard that is relevant today, to our viewpoint and to the court system. A lot of people in the courts would never get away with what Ted does.
It's clear to us Ted is opportunistic, using a past fling to play the media and gain favor. He also wants to maintain the relationship with Liz, and there's a twist with Liz. While we assumed she had no idea, she did have some suspicions.
This movie could have been more effective if it was about a fictional killer. Ted Bundy brings a lot of baggage, but it also helps get this movie attention. A fictional killer could have had us guessing guilty or innocent throughout the movie, but being who this is we know. On the other hand, knowing Bundy, it allows us to dive into Liz's head and guess at what she knows or suspects.
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