Celluloid Serial Killers

Paul B. Kidd's Top 15 Serial Killer Movies Continued...

10. Cop (1987) C-110m

If nothing else this excellent yet hardly noticed thriller is the movie that will go down in history as the first to use the term "serial killer" in its dialogue. And what a good serial killer movie it is. James Woods plays the cop who investigates the grisly murder of a woman only to uncover a can of worms that involves no less than sixteen more killings dating back donkey's years, a crooked dope dealing cop (gee, what a surprise) and a short affair with an enormously endowed hooker until she... well, you'll see for yourself why the affair is so short.

It is a very credible movie that moves along at a rapid pace and includes all of the usual traits of a cop- in- pursuit- of- a- serial-killer movie in that his boss doesn't believe that the murders are connected and tells him to get off the case or he'll be sacked, his home life is a disaster and his partner (Charles Durning) keeps covering up for him.

But in the end James gets his man. Definitely worth a look.

11. Jennifer 8 (1992) C-127m

This excellent serial killer thriller went virtually unnoticed at the box office but has created a huge cult following on video, and deservedly so. Andy Garcia features as the off-the-wall big city cop working a serial murder case in a small northern Californian town.

Naturally the local hillbilly cops hate the detective from the big smoke and do everything in their power to stop him producing the killer. But all is not lost for Andy who falls for the stunning Uma Thurman, a blind student who looks pretty certain to be the serial killer's next victim.

Jennifer 8 is a serial killer thriller in the vein of many before it in that the cop stumbles onto a killer, no one believes him, he pursues it anyway much to the disgust of the hierarchy and with brilliant detective work and against all odds comes up with the goods.

The fact that Andy and Uma are supported by the likes of John Malkovich and Lance Henriksen in a very strong cast only adds to the movie's class.

12. Citizen X (1995) C-105m

Movie Poster: Citizen X

Made originally for TV and now available on video, this true-life charmer is about the life and times of Russian murderer Andre Chikatilo, one of the most prolific serial killers the world has ever known, and a detective's (Stephen Rea) dogged eight year pursuit against all odds to bring him to justice.

Chikatilo tortured, murdered and raped the corpses of at least 53 people, mainly children, and disemboweled many of them and ate their body parts before he was captured in 1992, tried and executed by a single bullet to the back of the head.

This is a movie not a documentary and the story line about the detective's continued frustration with Russia's bureaucracy that hampers his bringing Chikatilo to trial is as entertaining as it is factual. The strong supporting cast includes Donald Sutherland and Max von Sydow. Well worth watching.