Ted Bundy: Falling for a Killer

(available on Amazon Prime)

FTC Rating: 4 out of 5

Do you really know the person sleeping next to you? For Ted Bundy’s long-time girlfriend Elizabeth Kendall, this question plagued her for years until he finally confessed the horrible truth. Interwoven throughout this five-part docuseries, she and her daughter Molly share their experiences with “Ted” as filmmakers present the story of notorious serial killer Ted Bundy through the women affected directly and indirectly by his crimes.

Strengths:

-Includes a plethora of photos

-Multiple interviews with people who knew Ted Bundy personally and/or professionally, giving the viewers an insight into his character

-Focus on the victims, survivors, and the women touched by these horrific acts

-Features stories of women empowered by the feminist movement

-Crimes are not described in a gratuitous fashion

Weaknesses:

-There were a few interview threads left dangling and perhaps Director Trish Wood could have pushed/dug deeper. There is a moment when Elizabeth recalls a conversation with authorities and alludes to her sex life with Ted Bundy (which she feels is relevant to their investigation) but the viewer does not learn why that is.

-Filmmakers often recycle family photos

Final Thoughts:

-When reading reviews of this docuseries, I was horrified to see how predominant misogyny featured and it truly saddened me but also reinforced the importance of a retelling of these events from the female perspective.

-Watching this docuseries before the fictionalized feature film “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile” increased my appreciation of the actors’ performances.