The Killing of America (1981) User Reviews

Chilling and morbidly fascinating

[Olov_Liljeborg · 7/10 · 22 June 2004]

Michael Moore must have seen this movie. This is Bowling for Columbine, dark and hopeless early 80s style. No humour here, just a dystopia view of an ugly, violent, dysfunctional America going down in flames, loosely connected through a sprawling narrative, and fueled by amazing archive footage.

Sensitive viewers be warned. There are plenty of ghastly sequences and photographs here. Some, no, lots of completely horrible stuff that will make you cringe.

While Moore aims at amusing us as he hammers away on his message, The Killing of America goes straight for shock value. The narrative seems to exist primarily as an excuse for showing a lot of violent images. The message never goes beyond "Look at all the violence. Something must be wrong with America". While true enough, this is hardly Pulitzer stuff.

But it is not message that makes this movie interesting. It is the fantastic collection of archive footage that the filmmakers have managed to scrape together. With the risk of appearing warped, I must admit that this is truly fascinating stuff. You'll find news footage here of riots, assassinations of political figures, sniper mass murderers etc. that is rarely shown anywhere.

I have long been fascinated by American contemporary history and politics, and in that vein, I find this movie unmissable. The three segments showing the JFK assassination from different angles alone make it worth watching. I have never really doubted that Oswald was the only assassin before, but now...let's just say I'll leave a little room for speculation. Just a tiny little bit.

Those interested in the phenomena of mass or serial killers will also get their fill of material here. A large segment of the film is dedicated to this, including court footage of Ted Bundy and an interview with Edward Kemper. Both seem earily "normal". Isn't that more scary than if they were ranting lunatics? An audio tape, seemingly real, of Jim Jones admonishing his disciples to take their own lives more willingly, without complaining so much, is another complete hairraiser.

While obviously taken out of context and thrown together in order to create a slanted image of what was going on during the 1960s and 1970s, many of the scenes in this movie rightly show us a different America than the one we recognize from mainstream media.

This is not the whole truth. But it is a small part, an evil, shadowy part. The Killing of America desensitizes recent history. And as such, it is essential.

Still has the power to shock after all this time

[metalrage666 · 9/10 · 23 April 2013]

I first saw this movie as a young teenager in about 1984. Back then I never really got the seriousness of what "Killing of America" was trying to do. In many cases I found myself watching it just to see scenes of violence like it was any random horror movie. Subsequent views have had a polarising effect considering how I once viewed the same footage.

Killing of America, is a shockumentary, nothing more nothing less. It's role is not to delve into why the violence is happening or what is turning middle America against itself. I don't believe any movie or documentary can successfully do that, given that there are simply too many factors for why such violence exists.

For the film to generate the shocks that it does, even where the extreme violence is 50 years ago, is powerful in itself.

The reasons of why Charles Whitman decided to climb the university tower and just open fire on random strangers is never explored, but the fact that it happened, seemingly without any real provocation should be enough to make people stop and question.

The reasons why Robert Smith entered a beauty college and callously slaughtered 5 people, one of them a 3 year old, are never revealed, only stating that he "wanted to get known". That is the real nature of this film. It's appeal is in its straightforwardness.

The narration doesn't focus on gender or on race. There are crimes of white on black violence, just as much as black on white violence. However the undertone of how easily accessible guns are to people who obviously can't handle them and shouldn't be anywhere near them is evident throughout. The random almost inexplicable assassination of Martin Luther King who just wanted peace, to the equally bizarre assassination of Robert Kennedy by Sirhan Sirhan who claimed he didn't remember doing it.

There's footage of a police officer explaining how a shotgun can easily be purchased in any store or supermarket and also footage of alleged gun reforms that just don't go far enough, so the Killing of America is predominantly about gun violence, but again it's role is not to explain why the violence exists, but the fact that it does exist and that it's almost becoming acceptable due to how commonplace it is.

Yes there are a few anachronisms in the film, but these center around the use of numbers and statistics. It's unlikely that all this violence had a turning point in 1963, however one has to think that that date was chosen due to how traumatised America and most of the world was when Kennedy was assassinated, more so than ever before. Kennedy was not the first U.S president to be assassinated; Abraham Lincoln anyone?

The 1960's was not the first decade of serial killings either, given that the Charles Starkweather case happened in the late 50's and Bonnie & Clyde were way back in the 30's, but the 60's seemed to be the decade where so much happened in a relatively short span of time, from race riots, excessive almost daily violence, and an ongoing war both political and actual.

Overall this is a powerful film that achieves what it sets out to do. Much in the same way images of cancer are put on cigarette packs in some countries, this film is meant to be an in your face account of just how far and how fast society is sliding and continues to do so in the present day. It leaves out the psychological analysis of why and just presents the evidence as bleak as it is. If you can manage to locate a copy buy it and keep it.

Mondo film about the most violent period in the 20th Century.

[asummy · 7/10 · 7 March 2011]

This is a film that is hard to come by in the United States legitimately,but it can be found on Youtube. This film was done in the Mondo style,which means that it shows a lot of shocking footage covers lurid topics and is marginally educational at best.

The premise of this film is that America has been in serious decline after the assassination of JFK. MLK was assassinated next sparking race riots in many US cities. "Killing" did not have much in the way of analysis. It did however show interviews from some of the Sirham Sirham, serial killers, and even a few teenage prostitutes (one male and one female) in LA.

This documentary was made to entertain not to educate, which is why so many topics are covered: street crime, assassinations, serial killers, spree killers (snipers), race riots, the Vietnam War, child prostitution.

"Killing" brings to light the mind boggling levels of violence that plagued America in from the early 1960s-1980s. This showed serial killers that faded into obscurity throughout the years.

This film has some great stock footage and no real political leaning (aside the assertion that taking guns off the street might be a good idea). I would recommend this to any true crime junkie or anyone who wants to be reminded of what a truly awful time the 1970s were.

The twilight of Pax Americana

[Baroque · 13 March 2004]

Despite having been made back in 1982, this film has not lost any of it's impact...and living in the country where it was filmed, it hits incredibly close to home.

Before you dismiss this as another "Faces of Death" clone, complete with re-enacted scenes, be forewarned. This is real. 100% of the footage came from either TV news departments across the country, or from private collectors! You WILL see newsreel footage of people being shot to death (including one man being shot by police before the opening credits!), and disturbingly graphic descriptions of murders. There is even footage where people leave a courtroom to vomit after hearing a recording made by Lawrence "Pliers" Bittaker during the slow torture death of one of his victims.

Leonard Schrader, the older brother of director Paul Schrader, produced this film for the Japanese film market, where "death films" bring in big money. But instead of an exploitative "shockumentary" as normally expected, this is a detailed examination of how Western Civilization is slowly falling apart.

The assassinations of John and Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King, the attempted assassination of George Wallace, and a number of other people (Charles Whitman, David "Son of Sam" Berkowitz, John Wayne Gacey, Jim Jones, Charles Manson, Ed Kemper, Brenda "I Don't Like Mondays" Spencer, etc.) who, in their own twisted logic, saw the need to kill people, and acted upon it; all are reported here in great detail.

The film ends with a report on the murder of John Lennon, and a blunt statement that during the public memorial held in his memory, two people were shot.

No, this isn't a gross-out "video nasty", it's a hard examination of how the USA is in a slow collapse before our very eyes.

A Shocking Statement About Violence in America

[Rodrigo_Amaro · 10/10 · 8 September 2011]

Take the "Happiness is a Warm Gun" two minute shocking segment presented in "Bowling for Columbine" and multiply for almost two hours, then you have this excellent documentary named "The Killing of America". It reminds of what Michael Moore did in his powerful masterpiece, but this film haven't reach the impact of the Oscar winning documentary since it wasn't released in the U.S. back in 1982 and not even now (but it's easy to find on the internet). Leonard Schrader's film touched a deep wound of America and of course this couldn't be released in there, it would be misinterpreted and still can be depending of how one view this documentary. Strangely, this was made for the Japan market, another reason of why this wasn't shown in U.S. not even for home video.

What we have here is a look at some of the most horrendous figures and crimes that ever appeared in U.S. between 1950's and 1980's, most of them captured on camera, broadcasted on TV, followed by an haunting voice over from Chuck Riley. There you'll see the Kennedy's assassination, John Lennon's murder, Jim Jones, Ted Bundy, Charles Whitman, Sirhan Sirhan, Charles Manson, Brenda Spencer and other bigger and minor criminal and tragical events recorded on film that took place in America.

The intelligence of this documentary is to provoke a debate on why there was so much violent crimes in America in all the images presented here without reaching the sensationalism of things like "Faces of Death". It intrigues its viewers by exploring a dark past of one the most powerful countries of the world showing a unflattering and sad side of it. It gives us numbers, facts, informations and impressive things to make its audience think about possible reasons behind this enormous stream of crimes and violence.

The images are haunting and quite depressive, but it should never be viewed as an attack to a country's past, it's just a critical piece that exposes its great arguments over a current critical situation of that period. It could happen at any place, and it happens indeed. I'm hoping to find such a brutal and honest film like this concerning the violent facts and images of my country, someday in a future until we have someone with the guts like the creators of this powerful media. 10/10

Great documentary.

[Pacey-8 · 10/10 · 16 January 2000]

Very interesting and entertaining documentary featuring heaps of real footage of shootings and assassinations, etc. The squeamish should definitely avoid, because the footage is extremely graphic, and should definitely not be viewed by those under the age of 18.

Gory. Seedy. Unflinching. And a message. Documentary?

[punishmentpark · 6/10 · 12 August 2013]

Even though 'The Killing of America' wants to state a peaceful message, it has a dubious way of getting its point across, lacking logic and thoroughness. Of course, a lot of the statistics may be real, but more than anything else they show (partly) how a 'new' society, after two world wars, is beginning to face its limitations and problems concerning its enormous growth, high speed development and radical cultural changes... and several serial killers portrayed here never even used a gun! But beyond that, restrictions on American gun laws would certainly have mý blessing...

Back to 'T.K.o.A.', because beyond its failing as a documentary, it offers an intriguing series of archival footage pertaining to all kinds of 'modern' violence in America, from about the early sixties up to the early eighties. It starts right off the bat with the brutal street killing of a black suspect by some cops, and does not flinch at showing gore or seedy images that many will find offensive - some ninety minutes of assassinations, snipers, riots, war, mass-suicide and serial killers are then still to come...

As a documentary: 3 out of 10. As a historic document: 9 out of 10. Which brings it to an average of 6 out of 10, since I find it hard to prioritize in this case...

This film is as powerful and brutal as it gets

[BandSAboutMovies · 10/10 · 8 October 2018]

If you think the United States is in bad shape today, perhaps you should check out this film, made well beyond the news bubble and the 24/7 headline cycle. The 1970's were bleak.

If you thought mass shooters were because of video games or that we just suddenly became a more violent society, sit through this movie. It's brutal. It will assault you. It will take your name. It will own you.

Director Sheldon Renan suffered from depression for a year after he finished this film, as was editor Lee Percy. Even the John Lennon vigil at the end, added at the request of Japanese producers to help the movie end on a positive note, had people shoot at one another. That ending is somehow even more downbeat than anything else, after a movie where Sirhan Sirhan cries about killing RFK and you see more of the Zapruder film than you knew existed.

How destroyed was Renan? He went on to write the screenplay for 1990's Lambada.

The voice of this film is incredible and it comes from Chuck Riley, who did the voiceovers for these trailers: The Godfather, Child's Play 2, Die Hard and many more.

The writing comes from Leonard Schrader, brother of Taxi Driver writer Paul, who was inspired to do this movie after writing a film called Hollow Point for Roger Corman. As he researched that movie, he met so many hitmen and spent so much time with them, he learned exactly how killers planned and executed hits.

There's even a one-on-one interview with Edmund Kemper, where he calmly discusses killing his mother and young women. That said - the goal of this film isn't Mondo Cane exploitation.

According to a New Republic article, it wanted to erase the line between killers and the audience. Renan said Schrader "wanted to turn the audience into murderers. He wanted viewers to recognize that in themselves, ostensibly so that they would do something about it."

As they worked on the film, Reagan and Lennon were both shot. Things did not get better. Things are bad now. So often I use film to hide from reality, but this movie makes you face it.

There is a lot here I never knew about, like Tony Kiritsis, an Indiana man who held a mortgage broker hostage while hosting a press conference in the most polite manner possible. Of course, he also had a shotgun wired to the man's head that was ready to go off if he was shot by the police.

Some feel that this movie glamorizes the killers. I would refute that and say that it makes you see the senselessness of their action. As the former president of a Zen meditation center, Renan gave them a forum because he believed that "you just have to feel compassion for everybody - you just do. I do, anyway. For me, it was a journey into the depths to try to get some understanding."

This is a movie that I think everyone should watch. It's sobering. It's maddening. And it approaches art.

The Story of Violent America, Circa 1980

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 9 November 2016]

A documentary of the so-called "decline" of America, said to begin with the Kennedy assassination. It features a lot a great footage (most of it exclusive to this film) from race riots to serial killers and much, much more.

This really does show it all: cops shooting suspects, political assassinations, the Jim Jones cult and such notorious figures as Charles Manson and Ted Bundy. The most disturbing part is an interview with Edmund Kemper, an "American who killed Americans". Although not as famous (or infamous) as Manson or Bundy, Kemper talks of killing his victims in a very casual way, and is rather intimidating -- he looms at almost 7 feet in height!

As an interesting side note, the narration is done by Chuck Riley (known for his movie trailer dialogue), who coincidentally had known Jack Ruby. What it was like to narrate a scene of Ruby killing Oswald when he had a personal connection is something we can only wonder about.

Although not mentioned in the film, a Los Angeles police officer claimed that every officer who shot and killed a suspect would retire within four years because of the psychological damage it caused. This would be an interesting stat to look into. Is it true? Has it changed?

"The Killing of America" was initially shown in New York City in 1982 at the Public Theater, but never received a commercial release in the United States. It did receive a home video release in Britain, and a wide release in Japan, where financial backers reportedly pressured the director to add footage of peace vigils for John Lennon as a way to make the documentary less depressing. Years later the documentary would receive a 2013 North American release at Fantasia Festival in Canada (which is a bit odd, as the film has no "fantastic" elements). And in 2016, thanks to Severin, it now gets a full Blu-ray treatment.

Critic Eleanor Minnikka wrote, "Rather than an in-depth study of the reasons for and effects of the rising murder rate in the U.S., the director has chosen to emphasize the violence and the need for gun control to help lower the appalling amount of mayhem that distinguishes the U.S. from its European counterparts." Minnikka raises a good point that the film is more a showcase of violence rather than any actual study of it. Perhaps more interesting is how violent crime today (2016) is actually on a decline from the 1970s and 1980s -- what happened since this film was made to change the trend?

The Blu-ray from Severin features new interviews with editor Lee Percy and director Sheldon Renan, and an audio commentary from Renan, who explains in detail his background, his association with the Schrader brothers and the genesis of the film. Who knew that renting the Zapruder film cost an astounding $20,000? Renan, who (rightly) considers Kennedy a "hawk", suggests he is not a believer in the lone gunman theory. While this has no bearing on the film, it is interesting to note because of the central role JFK plays in the narrative.

One of the more interesting inclusions on the disc is a brief discussion of "Mondo" films and the place of this movie in that trend. While I would hesitate to put "Killing of America" in the same category as "Mondo Cane" or "Faces of Death", a case can be made for a connection. Not only do each feature real scenes of graphic violence, but "Killing", like "Faces", had its biggest success in Japan. Why Japan? Hopefully the Blu-ray allows "Killing of America" to be properly appreciated in its home country, as it has some shocking lessons to offer.

Hard to find, but worth the effort

[The_Pat_Bateman · 8/10 · 2 December 2005]

This movie was hard to find. reading about it, I read it wasn't ever released in America. I have currently found it as a Region 2 (United Kningdom/Europe) DVD release.

that being said, this is one great documentary. I'm sure it was very shocking to anyone who saw it in 1982, it was shocking to me today. In today's world, the media- television, movies, music etc. There is a lot of violence. There is a lot of glamorization of violence. Some people like violence, some don't. That is not the point.

This documentary deals with murder rate in America. Its not just another documentary covering a few statistics here and there, this has excellent footage. You will hear surprising statistics, you will see serial killers, you will see actual people being shot.

It IS shocking. I have seen so much shocking stuff, that I am numb to a lot now, but this was shocking. I for one, never saw the entire JFK footage. Its on here. The Robert F Kennedy assassination is on here. A few other actual footages, or assassinations and assassination attempts are on here.

Serial killers are covered in depth in this documentary. You see actual footage of notorious killers such as Ted Bundy, and Charles Manson. You hear about others you may have heard of- Charles Whitman, John Wayne Gacy etc.

There were also some serial killers and incidents I never even heard of in this movie. There was one incident where a guy who gives out bank loans was taken hostage and paraded around the city for 3 days in front of the media and everyone. There is another incident where a guy takes over a TV station.

Today we have documentaries such as Bowling for Columbine, or Fahrenheit 911. These are trash. they do not show good legit footage, and the truth and statistics in these documentaries are twisted. I have no reason to believe anything in this Killing of America documentary is false. First of all, the footage is right there. The only thing that would be made up is the statistics, which I doubt.

This documentary is graphic. This documentary is shocking. It is also a great history lesson. You will learn more about killers and incidents you know. If you have not seen this film, and know a lot of the subject, you are still guaranteed to learn something.

I would say this is a must see for anyone interested in shocking real events, or interested in well made documentaries. It will shock you.

Lots of violent footage

[osborneadam · 6/10 · 24 March 2015]

This documentary is about violence in America up to 1981. It was intended for a Japanese audience. There's lots of violent footage, some not readily seen anywhere else. If that's what you're looking for this is a good movie for you. But it doesn't really make a statement other than America might be more violet in 1981 than ever before. I say might because we're not sure why or by how much. There are some messed up people out there. That's what this shows you, example after example...over and over and over again. Newspaper coverage used to be as graphic as this movie. In the 1950's newspapers often included gruesome pictures of mangled injuries from auto accidents. Generally, 90% of the population are well-meaning. The other 10% are ill-intentioned or desperate enough to commit horrible things. This movie is about those 10%.

82 shockomentary is a killer

[videorama-759-859391 · 9/10 · 17 November 2013]

This is one doco I wouldn't hurry to watch again. There were a few moments of this old, riveting, eye opening pic (that I viewed for the first time last week) that absolutely chilled me. Amongst some images of sick, abhorrent violence, we come face to face with those notorious few, who've earned their names in history, as the worst serial killers, and I need not spell em' out for you. Every frame of this pic is real, no dramatization or reenactment by capable actors, it's the real deal, a true shocking slice of America. It really goes into the Kennedy Assassination, which I liked, the two shooter theories, and CU shots of the actual point of impact. We even see Reagan get it, up close. Some of the interviews with those cold sadistic sons of bitches, is what's most affecting, the easily disturbed should steer clear of this one. We are totally repelled by these monsters. Bundy is what true nightmares are made of, I would of loved to be the one frying him. The final words from that Judge left a lasting memory. Starting with a police shootout, and ending with John's Lennon's vigil, TKOA is that truly one time shockomentary pic, where age in no way has dampened it's impact. Like a scar, it never gets smaller, or goes away. It's there for life. This is the lasting impact has. This well made doco, is not one I'd opt to watch again. It's too confronting and morbidly chilling. I'm better watching the new horror film, something this great, 'in your face, real life, can't get out of your head' pic is more than, and I give weight to the latter of that description.

Interesting shockumentary

[tomgillespie2002 · 6/10 · 5 March 2012]

In the 1960's a new sub-genre of pseudo-documentaries was produced by Italian filmmakers Paolo Cavara, Gualtiero Jacopetti and Franco Prosperi. Their first film, Mondo Cane (1962), was to introduce an alternative kind of ethnographic cinema. With the success of the film, it gave birth to many imitators. These films focused on bizarre, often graphic portrayals of sometimes archaic cultural practises. As this genre progressed through the 1970's and 1980's the main focus was on death, and the representation of it. With a cinema-going public demanding increasingly graphic depictions of death, film makers turned much of their attentions to creating fake images of death. This trend was exacerbated by the enormous success of Faces of Death (1978) and it's sequels and many imitators (such as the Traces of Death series).

By 1982, the trend for death film moved towards saturation, and it seemed that every continents' obscure and often made up practises had been exposed and exploited. The Killing of America, written by Leonard and Chieko Schrader (brother and sister in law to Taxi Driver (1976) writer Paul), is constructed of real footage, and it's thesis is very simple. The film presents America in all of it's violent tendencies, and looks at some very well known cases of murder etc. We are shown the assassination's of John Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Martin Luthor King Jr. The stories of the all-too well known serial killers such as John Wayne Gacy, Ted Bundy et al. The film shows the devastation caused on the American streets from the civil rights movement, images of suicides, along with some pretty grim murder sights (these are often shown with still images).

The Killing of America seems to pose some pretty stupid questions about American society. The narrator (Chuck Riley) often relates murder numbers, and juxtaposes the rates of murder with "England, Germany and Japan combined." Why are there almost double the amount of murders in the USA when (combined) these aforementioned countries do not. It's a strange question to pose to the viewer. It is incredibly obvious what the answer to that question is: Gun laws. That said, it is a more interesting example of this mondo-style documentary (shockumentary if you like), and some of the imagery is genuinely disconcerting.

www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

Exploitation Of Violence

[Lechuguilla · 5/10 · 11 January 2014]

Violence is the theme of "The Killing Of America", a visually graphic compendium of murder in the U.S.A. "Guns and more guns" intones the narrator, as shots are fired, victims fall, chaos ensues, and the killer's face appears on screen ... over and over and over, one crime after another. Watching this film you'd think that there's a killer hiding behind every bush.

Beginning with the JFK assassination and progressing to the early eighties, the film compresses some twenty years of violence into ninety minutes, giving a somewhat distorted cultural impression. How does the murder rate during those twenty years compare to prior decades? The film doesn't tell us. How does that period compare to more recent times? The film can't tell us. So that one problem with "The Killing Of America" is that it is time-bound, stuck in a particular era, without reference to the past or future.

One might also ask ... how does American gun violence compare to other countries? The film compares the U.S. to Japan and England, which have ultra-low murder rates. Beyond that, the film doesn't say. Recent statistics show that in comparison to other industrialized nations, the U.S. has a higher murder rate than any country except Russia. But when compared to non-industrial countries, like Honduras, Venezuela, and the Ivory Coast, violence in America is quite low. So a second problem with the film's message is lack of adequate geographic perspective.

There's also a problem with the film's structure. Although there's a general chronological progression of events, I cannot justify the film's sequential positioning of different types of gun violence, for example, a political assassination followed by some local neighborhood murder, followed by an expose on a highly publicized serial killer. Such sequencing is haphazard and arbitrary. Apart from the obvious violence, what is the unifying theme in this jumble of cases?

The visuals in the copy I watched are poor with lots of out-of-focus scenes, though that can partly be explained by impromptu photography. Overall images trend a little too dark. Sound quality also is poor in spots. Most background music is a bit too frenzied and too loud. John Lennon's song "Imagine" provides a welcome reprieve at the end.

There is no question that the level of violence in the U.S. was then, and still is, too high. "The Killing Of America" does indeed provide factual information, with very good video footage of local murders and highly publicized national cases. But the political bias toward gun control is blatant. And the overall production suffers from morbid exploitative visuals at the expense of calm, rational analysis.

Excellent Archival Footage

[rwint · 27 May 2002]

Documentary featuring footage of some of America's most well known murders and assassinations. It's filled with a lot of statistics and done with a very serious tone giving it a sort of newsworthy 'importance'. (If narrator Chuck Riley's voice got anymore resonate of stern you'd swear he'd have to be a robot.) Yet it offers no real solutions and after ninety minutes of almost complete carnage does it only briefly mention the issue of handgun registration. Thus despite it's pretensions it's really like all the rest of it's exploitation brethren (FACES OF DEATH, INHUMANITIES, etc) which were made simply to cash in on the shock value of it's content.

Yet there are a few things that allow this to rise above the rest. First of all everything is well known and documented so there is no question as to it's authenticity. You also get to see some intriguing interviews with the killers. There's the very, very confused Sirhan Sirhan, the lighthearted and joking Charles Manson, and the intelligent,well versed Ed Kemper who explains how he slept with the severed heads of his victims. There's also moments of Ted Bundy getting very riled up during his court case. There's a security tape showing two killers very politely allowing a woman to go ahead of them in line, buy her stuff and leave, before coldly shooting the clerk to death. There's even a look at the 16 year old girl who shot 15 school children at a playground and then later became the inspiration for the Boomtown Rats song I DON'T LIKE MONDAYS. And there's even more.

If it's vintage archival footage of some of modern America's most bizarre and notorious crimes and criminals that you are after, than this is tops. It's well edited for ultimate emotional impact and remains quite riveting. It's strong stuff despite it's dubious politics and intentions. Why this has become so obscure and hard to find is a mystery.

Deep analysis of the violence in the 80's

[DhariaLezin · 8/10 · 26 October 2013]

Of course that if we watch it after "Bowling for Columbine", perhaps it will mean not much for you, but it definitely sets a horrible, sad and real background to all the violence phenomena that the USA has been living after 1963, and after a long journey through history, it ends up in the contemporary times of when the movie was made: 1982. The documentary is explicit, is depressive, sad, but still, very crude and accurate, and studying the theme from different points of view: anthropological, sociological, historical, etc. If you are interested in understanding how USA became so chaotic and yet the world potency, I think this movie is a must.

Begs for a 21st Century Sequel

[sam-27-687361 · 9/10 · 17 February 2016]

This is most definitely one of the great obscure documentary films, one of the most chilling and engrossing I've ever seen. It's tremendous that YouTube and other corners of the internet have brought it to so many more people than were able to see it in the 1980's. It not only spotlights the well-known killers/maniacs of the 60's through the early 80's, like Charlie Manson, Ted Bundy, Jim Jones and John Gacy, but also gives time to things like James Hoskins' 1980 hostage-taking at the Cleveland TV station, Anthony Kiritsis' bizarre hostage-taking of Richard Hall in 1977, and other things which aren't widely remembered today.

The whole concept of the film, which holds that violence in America had increased largely since the assassination of John F. Kennedy, is compelling, if maybe a bit inaccurate. It refers to the 1950's as having been a more innocent time, of "big cars, big everything", but also accurately acknowledges that "not everyone could get a share of the dream" (i.e. African-Americans). The only drawback to this view is that the 50's weren't anywhere near as "wholesome" or "innocent" as many people have been led to believe. It was a time of ugly, repressive social structures and ugly Cold-War politics, with a complacent, prosperous appearance that was not entirely fictitious, but which masked a lot of nasty things going on beneath the surface. "The Killing of America" would have been and even better and more explosive film if they'd have spent a little bit more time on the inaccurate ideas that had already developed by then about the 1950's, an era which is still naively idealized by many Republicans who are hell-bent on holding back social progress for non-white people, LGBTQ folks, and women.

All in all, I would love to see a modern-day follow-up, which would be made along the same lines as the original, and cover the many killers and violent phenomena of the past third of a century in America since the original "Killing of America" was made. "Night Stalker" Richard Ramirez; Jeff Dahmer; the seemingly sudden emergence in the late 90's of school-shooters like Klebold and Harris (being as the original mentions, among other young murderers, San Diego high-school-aged sniper Brenda Ann Spencer); the September 11 attacks, the resultant partially irrational hysteria over the "new terrorist threat" in America, and the Iraq War; and finally winding up with the mass shooting epidemic that has generated so much well-founded debate about gun control in the 2010's, not to mention the police killings of unarmed people of color that have garnered so much attention recently.

It'd be awesome to hear the original English narrator return for this hypothetical sequel, although I have a strong suspicion that he's now dead. In my view, aided by the constant hectoring of ultraconservative hawks and the new, radical right-wing National Rifle Association, the problem of out-of-control gun violence in particular hasn't gotten THAT much better since the early 80's. The whole tone of the original "Killing of America" was that society was declining then due to all this violence, which was driven home by the English-language narrator's somber, sinister voice. I can only imagine how much darker all of the comparatively recent violent events I mentioned above would seem if they were recounted by that same deep, ominous voice-over.

Guns Don't Argue

[richardchatten · 7/10 · 30 May 2018]

At first the 80's graphics and synthesized music led me to expect a sleazy exploitation movie, but the eloquent and forcefully delivered commentary - the statistics are often scarier than the images - reassured me as the film progressed that it seemed seriously intended.

Much of the footage I'd never seen before - such as JFK arriving at Love Field and being driven through Dallas in colour - although other film used frequently seemed to veer away from whatever central argument the film was actually advancing. At one point the film wistfully speaks of a more innocent era a quarter of a century earlier; but the increasing proliferation of atrocity footage such as we see here probably owes as much to the fact that cameras - and now mobile phones - are now ever-present to record such incidents.

If the film is about America's morbid love affair with the gun, the mass poisoning of his followers ordered by the Reverend Jim Jones doesn't really belong here; while like the summary execution of Viet Cong commander Nguyen Van Lem in Saigon on 1 February 1968, which is also included, it took place thousands of miles from the United States itself. Other material - like several photographs of suicide victims - seem to have been included because the film's makers didn't want them to go to waste rather than because they were particularly relevant. Likewise serial killers like the creepy Ted Bundy and the remarkably articulate Ed Kemper don't really seem to belong in this particular documentary since they didn't shoot their victims.

Another startling clip that I'd never seen before was of Lyndon Johnson himself in black & white after the University of Texas shooting in 1966 - over FIFTY YEARS ago!! - pledging new measures to prevent guns falling into the wrong hands. Before 1966 was out, America had already seen its first copycat shooting by an idiot called Robert Smith who committed a particularly cruel and cowardly mass shooting in a beauty salon in Arizona on 12 November 1966, after which he explained that "I wanted to get known - to get myself a name". (He's still in jail now, and I'd ironically never heard of him before; so much for making a name for himself!) Some of the 'reasons' we hear in the film are almost comically banal, while Sirhan Sirhan, as usual, seemed genuinely not to have a clue why he'd murdered Robert Kennedy.

Like the clip of LBJ, the scariest thing about this film is that it was made 37 years ago and so little has changed in the intervening years. The latest mass shooting in America happened in - guess where? - Texas less than two weeks ago, and by the time you read this there'll doubtless have been plenty of others.

more disturbing than any horror film. a must see.

[baz-15 · 10/10 · 12 June 2001]

This is a very brilliant documentary of the american way. From the very beginning there is a sense of doom. The combination of raw footage and matter of fact narration makes this intense and extremely tense. We are never given a breather, it is non-stop violence and trauma. There is an incredible interview with a serial killer in his jail cell towards the end of the film, a guy who slept with the heads of his female victims. By the end of the film I was very numb - it's really powerful stuff. 10/10

Raw, visceral, and shocking

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 2 April 2017]

The Killing of America is much more than just another shockumentary collection of real-life death footage, although that's exactly what it is. It's this film's narration that makes it an exemplary addition to the genre; it's nothing less than a treatise on gun crime in America, exploring the many different avenues down which it arises and looking at some truly shocking statistics.

It's the ice-cold presentation of the facts and figures, and the real-life cases of snipers and serial killers, that make this a memorable film. Certainly there are some shocking still photographs and clips presented here, but a lot of the footage nowadays seems tame given what's readily available for viewing on Youtube and the like. However, the direction, editing, and music all make this a film which engages the brain as well as the senses.

Brutal and unsettling, but undeniably powerful and provocative just the same

[Woodyanders · 9/10 · 29 November 2016]

This documentary about the appalling mass epidemic of random and widespread gratuitous violence that initially started sweeping across America in the early 1960's might make for decidedly uncomfortable viewing, but it nonetheless does a frightfully persuasive job of illustrating that violence is a dangerous sickness with no immediate foreseeable end or cure in sight.

Director Sheldon Renan and co-writer Leonard Schrader pull no punches in their alarming catalogue of all kinds of grim and unpleasant atrocities: The assassinations of John and Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King, and John Lennon, the heinous misdeeds of such notorious serial killers as Ted Bundy, David Berkowitz, John Wayne Gacy, the Hillside Strangler, and Dean Corll, the attempted assassinations of George Wallace and Ronald Reagan, the Charles Whitman shootings at the University of Texas in Austin, the tragic shooting of several student protesters at Kent State University, the horrifying schoolyard killings committed by Brenda Spencer, the equally upsetting Jonestown mass suicides, and other such in-your-face bleak occurrences are addressed in an unwaveringly stark and straightforward manner. Chuck Riley handles the narrator chores with appropriate solemnity. The flesh-crawling score by Mark Lindsay and W. Michael Lewis does the spine-tingling trick. The rough cinematography provides a suitably gritty look. Loaded with hideously explicit photos and newsreel footage, this notorious mondo shock doc packs a savage punch right to the gut.

Alive To This Day.

[DarkSpotOn · 7/10 · 6 July 2022]

This was a historical lesson version of Faces of Death, the history of America's growth of violence, death, tragic events and murder. Fristly we go from the beginning the death of Kennedy, and then we jump to school murderers, i'm sure Columbine would of been in this project if this was made in 2000s, but this is before Columbine exsisted. There's also the Manson family, comparison of racism, how a black man was killing white people, and other way around. Then there was the segment of this (bar owner?) that got arrested for his crimes, so he had confess, and this cult where people had to kill themselves after the leader forced them to do so, even babies. Finally, we then jump to the killer stars, Gacy, Bundy and Kempler, how the three had their killing sprees. The ending was the death of John Lennon and his music playing which was a really unique way to end this flick. I only had a problem with the audio, it was really hard to understand what people were saying, and there was no subtitles, so that's what really pulled me down a bit, because it was hard to follow at times.

As the title of the review suggests, the movie is alive to this day, in the U. S, and we still have mass shootings up there even if this flick pointed at red dots pretty well, stating that in other countries about 15 cops die, while in USA 3000+ of them die, and that in other countries they barely have any guns, while in USA, the people living in the USA, have over millions of guns. Scary stuff, but very well made.

Pretty powerful and disturbing.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 10/10 · 20 March 2001]

"The Killing of America" is a brilliant mondo documentary about the rise of violence in the USA.Much more moving and provoking than "Faces of Death" series it features a real footage of assassinations(John F.Kennedy,Ronald Reagan,Robert Kennedy),senseless murders(the scene with a cashier is very disturbing)and many other violent events.It shows also the rise of serial killers in the US like Lawrence Bittaker,Ted Bundy,David Berkowitz-Son of Sam,John Wayne Gacy,Ed Kemper-The Co-ed Killer etc.Definitely not for the squeamish or easily offended,but for fans of mondo madness it's a real treat.Highly recommended.

Very clear footage of laughably gratuitous violence with a thin layer of documentary

[marksc111 · 5/10 · 3 April 2019]

Laughably gratuitous violence, and not laughable in the slightest. Watching this made me depressed for the state of mankind and modern America, yet it was so weirdly fascinating that I couldn't turn it off either. Do we really need to see (well shot, clear footage of) endless close ups of close range gun shot head wounds, fresh blood pouring out of the hole and all? Followed by a bit where the director will cut in a replay of the very same gunshot wound being inflicted, as if it wasn't already seared on your retinas, but ZOOMED IN this time and slowed down,, while his voice drones on inviting you to "look closely" at some detail?

The murders/perpetrators/incidents don't really have anything to do with one another and the only reason to bundle them up in a package like this is to for the sake of selling to people (like me?) who love watching cult documentaries or shocking footage of a confronting nature. There is a vague attempt at some token analysis, but it wears off very rapidly and just shows murder after murder with no context. There is a banal attempt to appeal to higher morals near the end, asking the viewer to aspire to a future with more hope and less murders basically, which was the funniest moment in the film. Coz this film does nothing to move us forward toward that goal. I'm simply left in a vaguely disturbed state after watching it; those images still flashing before my eyes. I need a rom com stat.

Well Made Documentary

[Michael_Elliott · 18 November 2016]

The Killing of America (1981)

*** (out of 4)

This documentary highlights the violent culture that has overtaken America. Throughout the running time we see a number of stories dealing with mass murderers, sexual assaults, sniper attacks and various other crimes. Narrator Chuck Riley talks about everything from political assassinations (the Kennedy's) to Jonestown to the Manson murders. Throughout the film we see how America is slowly becoming undone due to violence.

THE KILLING OF America was released in American theaters for a couple weeks before it pretty much disappeared from this country. The film was made for the Japan market where it was a huge hit and it was also released there in a much longer version with even more stories. As it stands, the film remains a fairly well-made look at a violent culture and unlike the FACES OF DEATH series, this film here takes real footage to show what violence is doing.

This film certainly has a message to get across. A lot of the blame is put on the fact that it's very easy to get a gun and we see what happens when madmen get their hands on an easy weapon. There's some interview footage with some of the mass murderers that are show (including Robert Kennedy's murderer) and we also see some trial footage to Ted Bundy. The John Lennon murder is looked at as are the stories of John Wayne Gacy, John Hinckley and Jim Jones among others.

The FACES OF DEATH series was pure exploitation to the cheapest level. I wouldn't call this film exploitation since it's main goal was to obviously scare people into hoping for better laws to protect people. The film manages to be entertaining as long as you can put up with the violence of the story.