Dans la peau du tueur

This film is based upon the 1989 non-fiction book The Riverman: Ted Bundy and I Hunt for the Green River Killer by Robert D. Keppel and William J. Birnes. Many have claimed this book actually inspired the Harris novel The Silence of the Lambs. However this is not true. This book was actually released after Harris's Silence novel. So unless Harris had a time machine, yeah, no. Harris may have indeed been influenced by this real life story from seeing or hearing about it in the press or elsewhere, or perhaps from reading about the FBI who did very similar interviews in the 1970's and 80's as is shown in the TV series Mindhunter. Nonetheless, contrary to popular rumor, SilenceOTL is not based on the book that this is based on. This film is actually pretty good if you're interested in Bundy or The Green River Killer. The film essentially becomes more about Bundy than the GRK, but nonetheless we do learn a good bit about both. This film, like The Deliberate Stranger has a good bit of very real Bundy-esque truths within it. To some degree, we definitely are able to get inside his head if we dare, and into Ridgeway's to some degree as well. Keppel after all was a Homicide Detective who worked both cases, and he became known as quite an educated profiler in understanding serial killers. Much of this is shown here. Overall the film is quite grim and fairly brutal, especially for a TV movie. It's more psychologically grim and brutal than visually, though it has some grim visuals as well. If you're interested and you can stomach this kind of fare, it's well worth a look. 7/10.

I've seen a couple of Ted Bundy movies and they were more of a slasher horror fest based on real events. Although The Riverman is also based on real events, and in particular the book authored by Robert "Bob" Keppel (played by Bruce Greenwood in the movie), this made-for-TV movie to me felt a lot creepier than the other two Bundy films I had mentioned.

Now before you go running off to the DVD store, you have to know that this is no slasher flick. This movie is scary for its psychological insights into the mind of a monster, particularly that of Ted Bundy. What's even scarier is how well Cary Elwes plays the role of Bundy, from his gestures, his voice, and most especially his eyes. It is perhaps one, or could be Elwes's best performance yet, albeit not quite recognized.

Though a made for TV movie, it felt more like a silver screen feature. The acting never feels forced, the pacing satisfactory, and the script very intense especially towards the film's conclusion. There may be an amateurish feel towards the cinematography, but over all, a very good, chilling film.

'The Riverman' tells the story of the infamous serial killer Ted Bundy (played here by Cary Elwes), on death row for his crimes. He reaches out to criminal profiler Bob Keppel (Bruce Greenwood) to tell him that he may have insight into the series of "Green River" killings that were plaguing Seattle. Sometimes working the case with a stressed-out detective (Sam Jaeger), Keppel sits down with Bundy for a series of interviews.

Stories like 'The Riverman' (based on a non-fiction book co-authored by Keppel) aren't for everybody, since they make us get to know sick minds better than most of us would really want to. But, on that level, it can be fascinating, as we learn from both Keppel and Bundy some ideas about those deviants walking among us: how they select victims, their ways of justifying their actions, etc. This being a made-for-TV movie, it refrains from showing much of the graphic violence that turns off some viewers. But, as directed by Bill Eagles, this solid film is a good case study in both pervasive atmosphere and subtlety. Characters like the real-life Keppel are now familiar to any viewer who's watched their fair share of yarns about serial killers: they become haunted individuals. Indeed, we get a sense of the toll that Keppels' line of work has taken on his home life.

The wonderful Kathleen Quinlan is typically great in support, even if she's obliged to play a kind of standard-issue "concerned spouse / partner" type of character. Jaeger is okay, but he's outshone by the more interesting Greenwood and especially the riveting Elwes, who's rarely been as good as he is here. The face-offs / conversations between Bundy and Keppel provide an effective foundation on which to build this picture. Also good in a supporting role is David Lawrence Brown; he plays the off-putting Gary Ridgway, the man who would be identified as the Green River killer decades later (thanks to improved forensic technology).

This is definitely the kind of movie that stays with you after it's over.

Filmed in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Eight out of 10.

I didn't know what to expect when I began watching this movie. I was immediately intrigued once it began going, however. This is the true story of how Ted Bundy (Cary Elwes) actually helped to find the Green River Killer back in the early 80's in his attempts to get a lighter sentence and avoid the death penalty. Although this movie is not about Ted Bundy it does go into his crimes a little bit and you get to know a little bit more about Bundy's twisted psyche. The performances were great, but the one that stands out is Elwes portrayal of the serial killer Ted Bundy. I didn't know if he could pull it off, but he did an excellent job and was very believable and his performance was chilling. I give this movie a 9/10.

I just saw this on TV from about the halfway point only, but was familiar with the plot from my reading. I'm anxious to see it again. I thought Cary Elwes BECAME Ted Bundy in a way that was eerie and absolutely impressive. Bruce Greenwood had a part that could have been mundane, but his tremendous depth as an actor turned it into a disturbing and memorable role. And I thought their joint scenes were .. well, completely intense -- contrary to the lead-in review from IMDb. Greenwood has always been one of my favorites, but I found Elwes a bit more of a surprise. Would recommend this to acting classes everywhere and to anyone who can withstand an in-depth look at psyches that are way outside normal boundaries.