The Deliberate Stranger (1986) (TV)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Marvin J. Chomsky

Writers:

Hesper Anderson (writer)
Richard W. Larsen (book)

Release Date:

4 May 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

Based on a true story, this film depicts the life of Theodore Robert Bundy, the serial killer. In 1974...

Plot Keywords:

Police | Serial Killer | Killer | Police Station | Police Department

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Mark Harmon	...	Ted Bundy
Frederic Forrest	...	Det. Bob Keppel
George Grizzard	...	Richard Larsen
Ben Masters	...	Det. Mike Fisher
Glynnis O'Connor	...	Cas Richter
M. Emmet Walsh	...	Det. Sam Davies
John Ashton	...	Det. Roger Dunn
Bonnie Bartlett	...	Louise Bundy
Billy Green Bush	...	Officer Bradley (Provo detective)
Frederick Coffin	...	Jerry Thompson
Deborah Goodrich	...	Martha Chambers
Lawrence Pressman	...	Ken Wolverton
Macon McCalman	...	Larsen's editor
Jeannetta Arnette	...	Mrs. Richter
William Boyett	...	Aspen detective

Runtime:

185 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Australia:M | USA:Not Rated

Company:

Lorimar Productions

Goofs:

Continuity: One of the guys in the line-up (which takes place in Colorado) is played by the same guy who also played one of the anonymous "Teds" being interrogated by the Seattle police.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Turbulence (1997)

He confessed to twenty three murders, but....

who really knows if Ted Bundy committed even more that he refused to admit to. When he was first captured he confessed to murders in "the three digit area" enjoying the game of cat and mouse with the police.

Mark Harmon is excellent as Bundy, with his self-effacing handsomeness, he works his way into many women's lives, getting what he wants from several. Manipulating and deceiving is a way of life for a sociopath, and Ted Bundy uses and discards women; according to the very interesting book by Ann Rule (who actually worked with Bundy at a suicide hot-line near the Seattle, Washington campus).

George Grizzard portrays the journalist who Bundy kept in touch with. M. Emmet Walsh and Ben Masters do a good job, as detectives from various jurisdictions, working together before the FBI/VICAP department was established. Lawrence Pressman portrays the Seattle Washington politician Wolverton, who had employed Bundy at one time, early in his career.

We see the many victims, but not the actual murders. Glynnis O'Connor portrays Cas Richter, one of Bundy's "girlfriends" who later realizes in shock what Bundy is capable of. She is initially reluctant to go to the police however, and it is frightening to realize had she come forward earlier, that the police may have been able to apprehend Bundy, and prevent the string of murders he committed cross-country.

This story is worth watching for anyone interested in true crime. While it does not delve enough into Bundy's past, and motives, it does factually address the crimes, and the difficulty the police had in apprehending and finally convicting Ted Bundy. He was finally executed in Florida, in 1989. 8/10.