The best thing about this made-for-TV-movie is Mark Harmon's performance as Bundy. As others have said, he gives an absolutely chilling performance, full of subtleties and very multidimensional. Great acting by Harmon -- in fact, this may be one of his best performances ever.
I don't think Harmon ever met Bundy, but he wanted to go and see him on Death Row before the movie was made so he could "look into his eyes." I believe it was the director who convinced Harmon to go instead to meet Carol DeRonch (the only woman to escape Bundy after she got into his car). Whatever else Harmon did to prepare for this role, it certainly worked. The result is riveting.
Keep in mind that this is only a TV-movie with a presumably conservative budget. Even still, the underlying story is told very well, and gives the viewer multiple points of view, putting special emphasis on the suffering of the victims families and the stress felt by the detectives who worked the "Ted" case for so many years. There have been a few more Bundy movies made since, but in my opinion, this one outranks them easily.
If you're looking for blood and guts, this version doesn't offer much of that, but that's what makes it so good. The violence is mostly implied and/or left to the imagination which makes it all the more powerful.
Sure, almost all the names are changed and there is some poetic license taken, but for the most part, this movie gets most of the big scenes and moments exactly right. Bundy's story is so broad and so full of detail that it is tough to cover it all in a few hours. You have to expect that certain aspects of the story will either be left out or brushed over, and that does happen. Even still, the major events remain intact, as do the major messages -- that Bundy took a life full of potential and threw it all away, and that his victims included many, many more people than simply the poor girls he killed.
I am still waiting for a *quality* big-budget film on Bundy, done for the big screen. Until that happens, The Deliberate Stranger stands up quite well. If you're fascinated with Ted Bundy's story, I would definitely recommend it. 9/10.
I don't think Harmon ever met Bundy, but he wanted to go and see him on Death Row before the movie was made so he could "look into his eyes." I believe it was the director who convinced Harmon to go instead to meet Carol DeRonch (the only woman to escape Bundy after she got into his car). Whatever else Harmon did to prepare for this role, it certainly worked. The result is riveting.
Keep in mind that this is only a TV-movie with a presumably conservative budget. Even still, the underlying story is told very well, and gives the viewer multiple points of view, putting special emphasis on the suffering of the victims families and the stress felt by the detectives who worked the "Ted" case for so many years. There have been a few more Bundy movies made since, but in my opinion, this one outranks them easily.
If you're looking for blood and guts, this version doesn't offer much of that, but that's what makes it so good. The violence is mostly implied and/or left to the imagination which makes it all the more powerful.
Sure, almost all the names are changed and there is some poetic license taken, but for the most part, this movie gets most of the big scenes and moments exactly right. Bundy's story is so broad and so full of detail that it is tough to cover it all in a few hours. You have to expect that certain aspects of the story will either be left out or brushed over, and that does happen. Even still, the major events remain intact, as do the major messages -- that Bundy took a life full of potential and threw it all away, and that his victims included many, many more people than simply the poor girls he killed.
I am still waiting for a *quality* big-budget film on Bundy, done for the big screen. Until that happens, The Deliberate Stranger stands up quite well. If you're fascinated with Ted Bundy's story, I would definitely recommend it. 9/10.