It's absolutely the best 'serial killer' movie I've ever seen, and why it got such bad ratings and why it's not distributed by A & E is something I can't figure out.
Eddie: "You just broke his ankle, Jack!"
Jack: "He shouldn't have been playing with adults." ii.iv
Actually it became A&E's highest rating
Movie ever in their cable history!
Er, my bad - I meant low ratings here on IMDb; and if it got such great ratings on A & E, why isn't it for sale there as their other series?
Guess I should ask A & E, huh?
Eddie: "You just broke his ankle, Jack!"
Jack: "He shouldn't have been playing with adults." ii.iv
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The directing is absolutely atrocious.
1) Several scenes with choppy slow motion that make you think the DVD is dirty.
2) Shooting through objects (tree branches while Reichert is talking to the Lieutenant about the radio, the wall cutout before Keppler and his wife have their long talk, the scene where Keppler is washing his face after the hooker incident)
3) Camera inches from the actors' faces (the Lieutenant telling Reichert how Bundy was caught)
4) Absurd camera angles (shooting up from the floor)
Any movie where the directing repeatedly distracts you from the story is bound to lose a few points from people who notice such things.
Imagine how fantastic this movie could have been with the same excellent actors and script, but with a less narcissistic "Hey, look at me, I'm making a movie" director.
Because obviously, anyone who does anything with the camera other than having it locked down at a medium distance from the action is a "narcissist," right?
The more artistic cinematography (or "directing," as you call it, for some unknown reason) is actually one of the things that sets The Riverman apart from the usual TV-movie crap, so lot of us who "notice such things" actually grant the movie a few points for its direction and cinematography.
Calm down, Vittorio. The CINEMATOGRAPHY in this movie was atrocious. Happy now?
Because obviously, anyone who does anything with the camera other than having it locked down at a medium distance from the action is a "narcissist," right?
Concerning point number 4, especially the low camera angles was a way to reference a famous bundy picture taken while giving those interviews, where one sees the shackles around his ankles.
shareIt's a decent film but has a lot of flaws. The Keppel sidekick is annoying in the extreme, the producers decided to add in soap opera elements like his wife fretting that he'd lose himself by working in serial crime again *rolls eyes*, it could have used an extra 90 minutes and been split into a two part movie and concentrated on Ridgway some more. The Keppel & Bundy scenes are superb, the rest of it is mediocre or just plain bad.
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