Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle

Killing them safely is a brilliantly made movie that captivates the audience. The storyline is riveting, as it takes you through an incredible story. The movie does a great job of digging deep and looking at a bigger picture. Tying all of the recent incidents with TASERS, and tying it back to the founders was brilliant. The interviews in the movie were excellent, and they did a great job of getting great footage. It's not easy to get this type of content for a movie, but this movie does just that. They were able to ask the tough questions to the people at TASER, and in return got great content. Overall, as a non-fiction movie, Killing Them Safely has the intensity and intrigue of a great fiction classic. You are engaged throughout the entire movie, and can't wait to see what is uncovered next. Nick Berardini directed a true masterpiece, and I am excited to see what else he is able to come up with in the future. Definitely a bright future ahead.

Killing Them Safely is an eye opening, moving, detailed, bold documentary. Some of the footage is so shocking that you will want to shout at the screen.

Before seeing Killing Them Safely, I knew almost nothing about tasers and Taser International. It's not black and white and it's not simple. While this film is incredibly focused on it's subject, it's not just about use of force and the police. It explores family and business, human nature and authority.The filmmakers crafted Killing Them Safely into not just a movie about young entrepreneurs, but a movie with complicated life or death stakes.

I've seen this film twice now and would recommend it to anyone.

Apparently when this came out the makers of the TASER were so infuriated that they review bombed it on Amazon. I can only assume the same happened here, too. How else to explain the strong feeling some reviewers have about the negative portrayal of a weapon that police are known and encouraged to abuse? There are some reviews that give weirdly low ratings and only seem to complain about the film being anti-TASER or not showing enough pro-TASER points of view. What a pathetic way to think about documentary filmmaking. If you want pro-TASER content it can't be that hard to find. To those who review bombed this: I can only assume that you are bad people.

To take this movie seriously, you have to be willing to believe that our Home Office (like the Yanks FBI) is too stupid to see if the taser is doing more good than harm. This basketball playing filmmaker is arrogant enough to believe that he understand the science and statistics better than our top coppers. Based only on the interviews and trailer, this appears to be an advertisement for the Ambulance-Chasing Barrister Burton and his expert witness Zipes. I wonder if Nick is bright enough to even understand that he was worked by these smarter adults. Nick's arrogance more than compensates for his limited abilities since he has decided that he understands things that the Smith brothers did not. And Nick understands things better than 500 000 coppers that use these things. Amazing. What does Saint Nick want us coppers to do? Should we say, "Gosh we were too stupid to understand the pros and cons of these weapons, but now that Nick Bernardino has opened our eyes, we will throw them in the rubbish and go back to the club."The sad things is that people that are totally ignorant will cop work might take this film seriously and this could lead to more cop-hating out there.

I gave it 2 stars (instead of 1 star) for good editing and great trailer)

Greetings again from the darkness. "Don't tase me, bro". In 2007, an incident at The University of Florida became a humorous viral sensation when a student, after asking John Kerry a question, was forcibly removed by police. His pleading became a catchphrase, but didn't prevent his being hit with the Taser. Now comes this documentary from director Nick Berardini, and he pulls back the curtain on the ethics of Taser International Corporation, the safety of tasers, and the protocol and use of this weapon by police officers.

We learn Jack Cover invented the taser in 1969, and it was the Smith brothers (Rick and Tom) who founded the Taser International company in 1993, increased the voltage output, and began marketing heavily to police departments as a safe alternative to firearms. The Smith's claim the taser is "the biggest revolution in law enforcement since the radio", though they spend the bulk of the movie giving evasive answers to variations of the question, "Is the taser safe or potentially deadly?" Director Berardini documents tragic events where police use of tasers ended with suspects dying. Doctors and lawyers chime in, but it's the testimonies of Tom and Rick Smith themselves that provide a level of creepiness that would complement most any horror film. Actual video footage is shown of not just the Smith brothers numerous depositions, but also of some of the actual events. Two of the most devastating are a man at the Vancouver airport, and a young man stopped for speeding directly across the street from his own house. The latter died after being tased … while his parents looked on. Neither appeared to be an immediate threat to the police officers. The film recounts incidents where kids as young as 6 years old, and women in their 80's have been hit with police tasers.

Reports show that more than 17,000 Law Enforcement Agencies utilize tasers, and one of the more interesting case studies is that of the Warren, Michigan Police Department. One of the early adopters of the weapon, this police department dropped the taser from use by their officers after a tragic incident. Since then, they have seen no increase in police injuries or shootings, drawing into question the company claim of a safer alternative.

At a minimum, the film should instigate further debates on two key issues: the safety of the weapons, and the training techniques and best use for police officers. The key concern seems to be a direct hit to the chest area which can immediately impact the victim's heart. It's frightening to think that police could be Taser-dependent or Taser-happy in using a weapon that may not be safe. We see some fascinating video of macho tough-guy cops being dropped immediately by one second (or less) tasers, but it's the events with multiple prolonged zaps that seem to cause the biggest concern. Again … this research is necessary and should be done immediately, given the widespread use of Tasers. As a side note, Taser International is still in the taser business, but their biggest revenue source is now police body cameras. Say what you will, but the company is certainly opportunistic.