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Movies / On DVD / Aileen: The Life and Death of a Serial Killer
Aileen: The Life and Death of a Serial Killer

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Aileen: The Life and Death of a Serial Killer (2003)

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Reviews Counted:57

Fresh:49

Rotten:8

Average Rating:7.1/10

Consensus: This chilling, unsettling documentary provides an eye-opening look at both Wuornos and the American justice system.

Runtime: 89 mins

Genre: Education/General Interest

Synopsis: Sensationalist director Nick Broomfield delivers his most personal film with this bracing, powerful sequel to 1992's AILEEN WUORNOS: THE SELLING OF A SERIAL KILLER. Ten years after making that... Sensationalist director Nick Broomfield delivers his most personal film with this bracing, powerful sequel to 1992's AILEEN WUORNOS: THE SELLING OF A SERIAL KILLER. Ten years after making that film, Broomfield returns to the story of America's first female serial killer, who murdered seven truck drivers over the course of 12 months in Florida, requested execution as punishment, and on October 9, 2002 was put to death. Broomfield's film shows Aileen's final appeal before her execution and identifies a whole new set of problems in reviewing her testimony. For one, Aileen contradicted her initial claim that she killed the truck drivers in self defense, stating instead that she murdered them in cold blood. Also, Broomfield realized that Aileen was potentially insane. Somehow, Florida governor Jeb Bush ignored this possibility and accepted her request for execution. After interviewing several of her closest companions, Broomfield sat down with Aileen herself for her final interview, in which she accuses law enforcement officials of knowing about her killing spree and not stopping it. While Broomfield has been criticized for being too active a participant in his films, this time it is warranted. His strong connection to Aileen turns the film into a deeply personal meditation on the life of a truly troubled individual and a scathing attack on America's corrupt justice system. [More]

Starring: Aileen Wuornos, Nick Broomfield

Starring: Aileen Wuornos, Nick Broomfield

Director: Nick Broomfield, Joan Churchill

Director: Nick Broomfield, Joan Churchill
Producer: Jo Human
Studio: Lantern Lane Entertainment

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Aileen: The Life and Death of a Serial Killer

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
12/30/06
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
01/15/04
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It makes for a tabloid account, albeit a deliciously droll sidebar to The Selling Of A Serial Killer.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
11/18/03
Stella Papamichael
Stella Papamichael
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This is a chilling, extremely insightful documentary--not so much for what it tells us about Aileen Wuornos as for what it says about our society.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
09/27/03
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Além de investigar com maior profundidade as origens da violência de Aileen, o documentário ainda comprova a perfeição da performance de Charlize Theron em Monster.

comment Comment
01/31/05
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New Yorker | comment Comment
08/01/04
David Denby
David Denby
New Yorker

Broomfield's misplaced exasperation is almost poignant.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
05/25/04
Bill Chambers
Bill Chambers
Film Freak Central
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
05/22/04
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The film stands quite chillingly as a final statement from a woman trying to fight her own commodification.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
05/21/04
Wesley Morris
Wesley Morris
Boston Globe

Aileen is, if anything, a scathing indictment against the death penalty and its proponents, keeping with the concept that all life is precious.

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
05/04/04
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews

[Broomfield's] least exploitative, most personal work to date

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
05/02/04
Laura Clifford
Laura Clifford
Reeling Reviews
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
05/01/04
Anita Katz
Anita Katz
San Francisco Examiner

Not even Charlize Theron's lauded portrayal of the accused can compete with the captivating genuine article, whose calculated professions of remorse barely conceal her festering rage at a lifetime of mistreatment.

Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly | comment Comment
04/23/04
Steve Schneider
Steve Schneider
Orlando Weekly

A haunting exploration of a ruined and wasted life.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
04/23/04
Jay Boyar
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel

Though unpleasant to watch, Life and Death of a Serial Killer presents a portrait of evil, betrayal and banality that's almost impossible to take your eyes off of.

Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
04/21/04
Marc Mohan
Marc Mohan
Oregonian

While I prefer more even-handed approaches to documentary film, there’s no denying the power of the footage, particularly that featuring [Aileen] Wuornos.

Full Review Source: Reno Gazette-Journal | comment Comment
04/09/04
Forrest Hartman
Forrest Hartman
Reno Gazette-Journal

This compassionate documentary should be of strong interest to viewers of the previous Wuornos film or the current Monster.

Full Review Source: Film-Forward.com | comment Comment
04/09/04
Kent Turner
Kent Turner
Film-Forward.com

It's clear Theron didn't so much resemble [Wuornos] as she did channel her deeply tormented soul, in a way that Broomfield never manages to do.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
04/08/04
Duane Dudek
Duane Dudek
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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