Movie Number- 43
Title- H.H. Holmes: America’s First Serial Killer (2003)
Genre- Documentary
Branden’s Rating- 6 out of 10
Bridgette’s Rating- N/A out of 10
Average Rating- 6
Netflix Rating- 3 Stars
Comments– This is the first movie on the list that we didn’t both watch, and I wasn’t sure if I should add it or not, but I decided a documentary is just as good as anything else.   This movie is about, as the title suggests, America’s first known serial killer, H.H. Holmes.  This man was sick and demented.  His tale is one of the more brutal I have heard.  I have been fascinated by serial killers since high school, and even took a Serial Killers course in my undergraduate days.  H.H. Holmes is a scary case because of how smart he is, and how easily he was able to go about his killings thanks to the low technologies of the time.  Aside from the actual story of Holmes, this movie was a good effort.  It runs 64 minutes in length, and does a good job of setting up Holmes’s childhood, up through his death.  This isn’t the most entertaining documentary about a serial killer I have ever seen, but I loved the fact that it included expert testimony from Harold Schecter, who is one of the leading true crime authors out there (and a personal favorite).  Not a bad way to spend an hour of your time if this subject interests you, and it is available on Netflix’s Instant Queue service, which is where I watched it.  The facts are told well, and if you look past the cheesy reenactment scenes, you can find an interesting film here.  Memorable.

Branden Chowen

Branden has been a film fan since he was young, roaming the halls of Blockbuster Video, trying to find the grossest, scariest looking VHS covers to rent and watch alone in the basement. It wasn’t until recently, though, that Branden started seeking out the classics of cinema, and began to develop his true passion for the art form. Branden approaches each film with the unique perspective of having studied the art from the inside, having both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in acting. He has been a film critic since 2010, and has previously written for Inside Pulse Movies, We Love Cult, and Diehard Gamefan. His biggest achievement as a film critic, to date, has been founding Cinefessions and turning it from a personal blog to a true film website, housing hundreds of film and television reviews, and dozens of podcasts.