The Riverman
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | The Riverman Alternative title The Riverman - On the hunt for the Green River Killer |
| Original title | The Riverman |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 2004 |
| length | 87 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 16 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Bill Eagles |
| script | Tom Towler |
| production | Greg Copeland |
| music |
Gregg Lehrman Jeff Rona |
| camera | Steve Cosens |
| cut |
Conrad M. Gonzalez Lynne Whitlock |
| occupation | |
| |
The Riverman is a 2004 thriller directed by Bill Eagles. The real story is based on the book The Riverman: Ted Bundy and I Hunt for the Green River Killer by Robert D. Keppel and William J. Birnes. In terms of content, there are clear parallels in this film to Das Schweigen der Lämmer . As part of the America's Most Wanted Serial Killers DVD collection , the film was re-released in 2008 in German-speaking countries under the title Gary Ridgway .
action
The FBI is in Seattle looking for a serial killer who kills prostitutes and sinks their bodies weighted with stones in the river, which is why he is known as the "Riverman". The inexperienced detective Dave Reichert is on the difficult case, but the investigation is unsuccessful. Then his colleague Robert Keppel receives a surprise message from the murderer Ted Bundy, who is imprisoned in Florida . The latter was considered to be the main suspect in several murder cases, but Keppel could not prove anything to him when he investigated him a few years ago.
Bundy now offers to help find the "Riverman". Through his criminal experience, he knows exactly how serial killers think and act. Keppel agrees and visits him in prison. In several conversations, Bundy can actually create a profile of the perpetrator after inspecting some files. A suspect is interrogated with a polygraph but released for lack of evidence. Bundy advises Keppel to drive to the red light district himself. He should put himself in the position of the murderer and imagine how the perpetrator lures the later victim into the car in order to then kill him. The excursion ends with a mix-up because some police officers mistake Keppel for the murderer. After his colleague Reichert clarified the situation, Keppel continues talking to Bundy, whose execution is imminent.
While Bundy lectures on the art of killing, the tide gradually turns, because he no longer talks about the "Riverman", but about his own crimes. He depicts a murder and reveals his necrophilic tendencies. After all, he confesses to numerous murders, more than the FBI was even aware of. A few years later, the "Riverman" can also be transferred. The new DNA analysis of a saliva sample reveals the suspect, who has already been questioned with the polygraph , who has been charged with more crimes than any other perpetrator before.
criticism
“Dark (TV) crime thriller based on the factual novel that inspired Thomas Harris to write 'The Silence of the Lambs'. Well played and photographed, the film is based on an intelligent book that focuses less on external tension than on the structures of this special investigation. "
Background information
The shooting of the telefilm , the September 6, 2004 A & E celebrated in the US premiere took place in Halifax ( Nova Scotia , Canada instead). In contrast to similar films, in which the acts of serial killers are often portrayed in a very shocking way, this film thrives on exploring the psyche of serial killers.
The German-language distribution title - Gary Ridgway - is unfortunate in that this film is more about the murderer in Seattle than about the acts in the Ted Bundy case, and the parallels in the Gary Ridgway case. Ridgway can also be seen in only three scenes in the film.
The plot itself, which in the film could take place in a period of a few weeks or one to two months, extended in historical reality over six years. This is how Gary Ridgway began his series of murders in 1982, and Ted Bundy's execution, which closes the film, took place in 1989.
The film has been available on DVD in German-speaking countries since September 18, 2008.
Dave Reichert, who was elected Sheriff of King County in 1997, later went into politics and has held a seat in the United States House of Representatives for his home state Washington since 2005 for the Republican Party .
Web links
- The Riverman in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ The Riverman. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed July 2, 2017 .