The Hillside Strangler

A real-life series of killings that held Los Angeles, CA, in the grip of fear during the late '70s provides the inspiration for this tense crime drama. Kenneth Bianchi (C. Thomas Howell) is a nebbishy security guard who lives with his mother in Rochester, NY, and dreams of becoming a police officer. ...more

While it may not be as disturbingly potent as director John McNaughton's masterful Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, director Chuck Parello's grim recounting of the real-life murder spree that terrified the citizens of Los Angeles during the late '70s does surpass the majority of recent of serial killer-themed releases (Gacy and Ed Gein, just to name a few) in terms of both artistic quality and vision -- not to mention quality of acting, thanks to a truly unnerving performance by underrated ...more