I saw KEMPER THE COED KILLER on Showtime the other night. I found it to be a good "true-crime" drama.
Yes, the acting could have been better... For example, I kept seeing an aged Dustin Hoffman as Kemper; and, a corny Steven Weber as detective Harris. What a hoot that would have been!
Even with the look-alike actors, I think KEMPER THE COED KILLER was fine for what it was. I think the acting was right on, the character development, though thin, was sufficient. The back-story filled in many of the missing pieces; and, the plot moved at a good pace.
I don't know how accurate it is as to the facts, as I never research Ed Kemper, like I did Ed Geins. However, the plot points about the over-bearing, invalid mother are too similar to that story, to assume that the "real" story was anything like the movie. I doubt that it was.
Still, Ed Kemper was a strange killer. He helps the police, he kills co-eds; and, hitchhikers, he kills his mother... those are not typical plot points in serial killer movies.
I like that it was set in a contemporary time period, instead of a more historically-accurate time. It makes you wonder, "could this happen today?"
Yes, the acting could have been better... For example, I kept seeing an aged Dustin Hoffman as Kemper; and, a corny Steven Weber as detective Harris. What a hoot that would have been!
Even with the look-alike actors, I think KEMPER THE COED KILLER was fine for what it was. I think the acting was right on, the character development, though thin, was sufficient. The back-story filled in many of the missing pieces; and, the plot moved at a good pace.
I don't know how accurate it is as to the facts, as I never research Ed Kemper, like I did Ed Geins. However, the plot points about the over-bearing, invalid mother are too similar to that story, to assume that the "real" story was anything like the movie. I doubt that it was.
Still, Ed Kemper was a strange killer. He helps the police, he kills co-eds; and, hitchhikers, he kills his mother... those are not typical plot points in serial killer movies.
I like that it was set in a contemporary time period, instead of a more historically-accurate time. It makes you wonder, "could this happen today?"