EXTREMELY WICKED, SHOCKINGLY EVIL AND VILE (2019)

Studio:      Netflix
Director:    Joe Berlinger
Writer:      Michael Werwie
Producer:  Michael Costigan, Nicolas Chartier, Joe Berlinger, Ara Keshishian, Michael Simkin
Stars:     Zac Efron, Lily Collins, Kaya Scodelario, Jeffrey Donovan, Angela Sarafyan, Dylan Baker, Brian Geraghty, Terry Kinney, Haley Joel Osment, Jim Parsons, John Malkovich

Review Score:

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Summary:

Liz Kendall struggles to reconcile her romantic relationship with Ted Bundy while the serial killer stands trial for murder.

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Synopsis:     Show/Hide Spoilers

Seattle 1969 – Accompanied by her friend Joanna, single mother Liz Kloepfer meets law student Ted Bundy in a college bar. Liz and Ted go home together and begin a romantic relationship.

Utah 1975 – Following a traffic stop, Ted is arrested on suspicion of aggravated kidnapping and attempted assault. When he returns to Liz, Ted explains that the charges are a case of mistaken identity, although he mentions he was on a suspect list for another case because someone gave his name to police. Ted and Liz get engaged.

Salt Lake County Court – February 23, 1976 – Defense attorney John O’Connell informs Ted that he is wanted in connection with several additional crimes. Judge Stewart Hanson finds Ted guilty of aggravated kidnapping against Carol DaRonch.

Utah State Prison – March 1, 1976 – Ted calls Liz from prison, beginning a series of phone conversations in which Ted continues to manipulate Liz into thinking he is innocent.

Detective Mike Fisher asks for Liz’s cooperation to connect Ted to murders in Colorado, but Liz refuses. Detective Fisher questions Ted in prison, which leads to Ted being extradited on homicide charges and ultimately imprisoned in Colorado in 1977.

Joanna continually tries convincing Liz that Ted is a murderer. Liz insists the accusations are mistakes, although she starts showing doubt when she begins hanging up on Ted’s manipulative calls followed by refusing to answer the phone.

Ted goes on trial for the murder of Caryn Campbell. Under the pretense of calling Liz, Ted escapes custody by jumping from a second floor courthouse window while the bailiff is distracted. Police recapture Ted six days later.

Liz visits Ted in prison. Ted gifts Liz with a copy of the book Papillon to convince her to not lose hope in his exoneration. Liz tells Ted she can’t suffer through these circumstances anymore and abruptly leaves in tears.

Liz begins a romantic relationship with her coworker Jerry. Ted escapes prison again.

Detective Fisher tries appealing to Liz once more. Liz again insists that the accusations against Ted are lies. Fisher warns that Liz will be shocked when she finally confronts the truth and leaves her with a confidential file she doesn’t open.

Florida, Two Weeks Later – Ted goes on a crime spree that includes murdering two Florida State University sorority girls. After he is recaptured, Ted calls Liz to claim he didn’t do the horrible things he will be accused of.

Sheriff Ken Katsaris threatens Ted with the death penalty. Katsaris then holds a press conference to present Ted with his indictment publicly.

Former girlfriend Carole Ann Boone visits Ted in prison. Ted insists Katsaris is merely exploiting Ted’s notoriety for political gain. Professing her continued affection for Ted, Carole Ann proposes moving to Florida to be closer to him. Because he is under a gag order, Ted begins using Carol Ann as a mouthpiece for speaking his side to the media.

July 8, 1979 – Ted’s televised trial for the Chi Omega murders begins with Judge Edward D. Cowart presiding, Larry Simpson prosecuting, and Dan Dowd acting as Ted’s public defender. Liz watches with Jerry while Ted begins gaining courthouse groupies.

During testimony from Detective Chapman, the judge sustains Ted’s objections when Ted begins acting as his own attorney. Liz becomes enamored with Ted’s performance during his trial, causing Jerry to become concerned. Jerry unplugs the phone to further prevent Liz from taking Ted’s calls.

Carole Ann, Ted’s mother Louise, and Ted’s attorney all implore him to plead guilty in exchange for Florida not pursuing the death penalty. Ted refuses, spurring him to dismiss public defender Dan Dowd and take over as his own lead counsel.

Odontologist Richard Souviron testifies that Ted’s teeth match bite marks found on the victims. Ted belittles the doctor during cross-examination, earning cheers from his groupies but an admonishment from the judge.

Ted calls Liz. Jerry answers. Ted asks Jerry to tell Liz that he loves her, but Jerry hangs up the phone.

Ted and Carole Ann bribe a guard to allow them a conjugal visit. Carole Ann breaks down when she realizes Ted still loves Liz. Ted insists he wants a life with Carole Ann upon his release and proves it by proposing to her when she takes the stand as a witness, which constitutes a legal marriage under Florida law.

Upset over Ted’s marriage, Liz accuses Jerry of unplugging the phone and not relaying Ted’s message because Jerry is jealous of Ted. Insisting that she needs to let Ted go, Jerry comforts Liz about her irrational beliefs until she has an emotional breakdown. Liz confesses that she gave the police Ted’s name in 1974, which is why she blames herself for what happened.

Carole Ann informs Ted she is pregnant. Ted is found guilty of murder and sentenced to death. Ted continues insisting he is innocent.

Ten Years Later – Ted writes a final letter to Liz. Liz finally opens the file Detective Fisher gave her in 1978.

Florida Death Row, 1989 – Liz visits Ted in prison. Ted notes the wedding ring on Liz’s finger. Liz pleads for Ted to tell her the truth about his crimes so she may finally have peace, but Ted continues claiming he is innocent.

Liz tells Ted that she gave the police his name in 1974. Liz further explains that she feels guilty because she could have prevented additional murders if she hadn’t mistakenly trusted him. Ted tearfully tells Liz he never had any urge to harm her.

Liz shows Ted the photo Detective Fisher gave her of a decapitated woman. Liz pleads for Ted to tell her what happened to the head. Ted finally writes the word “hacksaw” in steam on the window between them. Liz storms out in tears. Detective Fisher assumes Liz’s place to take down further confessions.

Liz reflects on the warning signs she missed throughout her relationship with Ted as she exits the prison. Liz’s daughter Molly greets her outside with Jerry.

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Review:

Ted Bundy repeats a familiar mantra throughout “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.” When a reporter asks about murder charges against him, Bundy enunciates through a defiant sneer, “I am not guilty.” More than once, his long-suffering girlfriend Liz receives some vague assurance of, “I’m gonna fix this.” Even in front of the judge sentencing him to death at his final trial, Bundy insists, “I’m not the one responsible for these horrific acts.”

Bundy of course lied each and every time some profession of imaginary innocence hissed out of his smirk. Yet an entity who is actually innocent of many accusations against it is Netflix.

Beginning with their “Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes” documentary series, Netflix took substantial heat for supposedly glorifying the convicted murderer as an entrancing icon. Controversy continued with the casting of heartthrob Zac Efron in “Extremely Wicked,” furthering a perception that Bundy was being idolized as a sinister sex symbol. Eyebrows were rising so high, Netflix had to take to Twitter to directly downplay discourse about “Ted Bundy’s alleged hotness.”

Based on Elizabeth Kendall’s memoir “The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy,” “Extremely Wicked” never suggests that the audience see Bundy with admiration or with sympathy. A scene featuring Bundy and Liz early in their romance initially appears almost schmaltzy with its upfront framing. Efron’s beaming smile finds its brightness bested by soft rays of sunlight bursting through a window behind him. An acoustic guitar then accents his sweetness in a tender morning moment where Bundy fixes breakfast for Liz’s two-year-old daughter Molly.

Yet without resorting to anything as conspicuous as a close-up, documentarian turned narrative feature director Joe Berlinger stays keen to make sure Bundy can be seen holding a Michael Myers kitchen knife in a wide angle. Anyone is free to find this subtly wagging finger as a reminder that while Bundy possesses the ability to be charming, his capacity for chilling carnage is never to be ignored.

Efron expertly exploits these moments in master shots. Almost any time Bundy appears onscreen with someone who isn’t looking directly at him, Efron intentionally ignites a wicked spark behind his eyes. His portrayal permits seeing Bundy objectively even though a suggestive scent in his behavior steers perceptions toward uncomfortable insinuations. Zac Efron terrifically toes a line that reflects Bundy’s eerie ability to be charismatic, cocky, clever, and creepy concurrently. When he flips from confident smugness to feigned incredulity at being convicted for crimes he knows he committed, one can almost be convinced Bundy is genuinely stunned.

Berlinger maintains this sense that the movie isn’t picking a side, even though it definitely does by its conclusion, through a multitude of tricky techniques. D.P. Brandon Trost’s camera employs a slight “Friday Night Lights” sway to put a pinch of off-the-cuff authenticity into cinematography. Until a flashback in the finale, “Extremely Wicked” never depicts any of Bundy’s crimes either. An argument might infer the film thus sows a seed of doubt regarding Bundy’s guilt. Really though, Berlinger simply shows an abundance of confidence that the combination of stripped-down direction and intuitive acting conveys events without undue judgment. He trusts viewers to draw correct conclusions about the people in Bundy’s immediate periphery without artificial influence.

For a dialogue-dependent movie almost exclusively constructed from scenes of confrontational conversation, “Extremely Wicked” rarely lags. The film refuses to resort to montages and doesn’t catch its breath in unearned spans of silence. Berlinger keeps every character on a forward roll, maintaining momentum that only infrequently pauses for an arguably excisable scene.

“Extremely Wicked” plays like two films in one. The first features Ted Bundy’s life in between crimes, as both a phony family man and a scheming prison inmate. The second examines the breakdown of a bystander, Liz, whose blinded love causes her to become a different type of casualty among a murderer’s manipulative machinations.

Had its spotlight swung more fully toward Liz, and opted to add more from the perspective of Bundy’s other key admirer Carole Ann Boone, “Extremely Wicked” would feel more dialed in to the women Ted Bundy broke mentally and emotionally instead of physically. It would be reasonable to contend that the featured females don’t consistently remain primary focal points when the film has an opportunity to give voices to these people.

Then again, Carole Ann Boone disappeared from the public eye following her divorce from Bundy and his subsequent execution. We don’t see her forced to reconcile with the terrible truth about the man she loved the same way we do with Liz because no one can be certain something similar occurred. Such contextual absences are in keeping with the film’s “what you see is what you get” approach to presenting events and outcomes largely as they were, relative for a dramatized biopic anyway.

Much like the movie “Shattered Glass,” “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile” showcases a compelling character study of a sociopath whose actions catch ordinary people in his orbit unaware. Because his crimes aren’t sensationalized with unnecessary recreations, Ted Bundy’s tangible terror isn’t the subject that becomes transfixing. The intangible trauma becomes frighteningly fascinating as a tragic tale of how violence perpetuates victims long after initial crimes are committed.

Review Score: 80

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