Netflix does it again with “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile”
The movie gives us a new perspective on the Ted Bundy murders
Donn Dughi / State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, Creative Commons
Ted Bundy in a courtroom during his 1979 trial.
May 28, 2019
The new Netflix original Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile is the latest buzz in the movie world. The movie tells the tale of the notorious serial killer — Ted Bundy, played by Zac Efron.
On January 24, 2019, Netflix released a 4-part docu-series called Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes. The series contained in-depth information on the court cases about the 30+ girls impacted by Bundy’s actions from the victims’ point of view. Producers included clips from the myriad of court cases and news coverage, along with never-before-heard tape recordings between Bundy and the producer while Bundy was on death row.
After the countless positive reviews and constant discussion about Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, Netflix released the movie “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile” on May 3, 2019. The new movie was told from Bundy’s longtime girlfriend Elizabeth Kloepfer’s point of view.
The film was based on Kloepfer’s 1989 memoir: The Phantom Prince: My Life With Ted Bundy. The film’s producer, Joe Berlinger, said he tried to focus on the early stages of their relationship, instead of focusing solely on the court cases. The film tried their best to represent Kloepfer’s belief in Bundy’s innocence.
It was sad, shocking, and disturbing all at the same time
— Jordan Schindler
In my opinion, the film did an amazing job capturing the life of Ted’s romantic relationship with Kloepfer. In the original film, producers completely left out her story and the emotional connection the two shared; I never really thought of how awful her life must have been living with someone like Ted. In the original documentary, Ted scared me — but in the new movie, Bundy left many feeling sorry for him. As many saw in the movie, Ted was a loving husband who gave Kloepfer and her daughter everything.
The film portrayed Bundy as a good husband in many ways. Viewers believed it was intriguing, yet challenging to see someone be so evil and vicious to so many girls, but then turn around and be sweet to his girlfriend. Watching Bundy interact with his girlfriend’s daughter especially made me sick to my stomach knowing his background and all the many vicious crimes he committed. Despite how sad and disturbing it was to watch, I loved the fact that the producers reenacted the story instead of telling us “documentary style” through court cases.
Overall the new film Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile is a must see. The action-filled, true-story tale is one that leaves everyone wanting more. “The movie kept me intrigued the whole entire time. It was sad, shocking, and disturbing all at the same time. I 100% enjoyed this movie more than the tapes and hope Netflix releases more true-crime documentaries like it. I will for sure be re-watching it sometime soon.” junior, Jordan Schindler said.
