The Beauty Queen Killer: 9 Days of Terror

I don't know how ABC does it, but all their crime documentaries look like they were filmed in the early 90s, even when the subject matter is not.

The music editing is awful; first of all, the theme is heavily "inspired"/ ripped off The Mindhunter, just worse, and secondly the quality of sound is hurting your ears. I realize that they are trying to create an uneasy atmosphere, but I'd like to retain my hearing, please.

The way the interviews are set is pretty erratic; there is at least 2 dozen talking heads, no matter how important to the story, so pretty quickly you lose understanding of who these people are. Too much.

Interview editing itself is not good. There were several moments in the 1st episode where Tina was very nervous, hurting but she tried to conceal her emotions and started trying to justify her nervous laugh, her actions, her gestures. That would have been a great thing to accentuate to the viewer to show, how this poor woman had to justify everything she ever did due to media misplacing some blame on her.

The setting, lighting, camera work are firmly set in the past. I won't explain it in detail, but you watch it for 30 seconds and you can't shake the feeling that this is a very old documentary that possibly predates you. It surely looks like it predates 21st century television.

Even the very worst Netflix documentary is light years ahead of this product.

These series look tired, dusty, and cheap.

And Tina deserves better than that.

The Beauty Queen Killer: 9 Days of Terror (2024) is a haunting dive into one of the most chilling true-crime cases. The film expertly captures the suspense and fear that gripped everyone during those harrowing nine days, keeping the audience on edge. Its atmospheric direction and gritty cinematography immerse you in the unsettling events, while the performances are raw and unnervingly realistic.

The tension builds steadily, with every moment layered with dread and uncertainty. It's not just a crime story; it's an exploration of obsession, vulnerability, and survival. True-crime fans will find it gripping and unforgettable-a chilling reminder of how terror can strike unexpectedly.

This true crime doc is narrator by a Mayballine ad spokesperson. It's like listening to a donkey explain what's it like to be a chicken. Or like when filmmakers use a nonhuman voice to tell a human story. This proves that any true crime doc worth its salt should only by narrated by narrators who've done murder themselves. The only thing this narrator has murdered is my Sunday evening. And the narrator doesn't even have to do a salacious murder. They could get their pet owl to do it, or their foolish 18 year old hardbody boyfriend. With his abs all as sharp like kitchen knives. Always wearing no shirt and his pants riding so low that that one part of his muscled pelvis is confusingly unmissable. You know, that hunk of meat just above his low waistline that you don't know what it's for, but you can't imagine it not being there? Like a handle for a door that only pushes. A push-handle.

The documentary added a little to what I already knew from Dateline or other such shows. The fatal flaw is that the survivors are not compelling characters.

ABOUT MY REVIEWS:

I do not include a synopsis of the film/show -- you can get that anywhere and that does not constitute a meaningful review -- but rather my thoughts and feelings on the film that hopefully will be informative to you in deciding whether to invest 90-180 minutes of your life on it.

My scale: 1-5 decreasing degrees of "terrible", with 5 being "mediocre" 6- OK. Generally held my interest OR had reasonable cast and/or cinematography, might watch it again 7 - Good. My default rating for a movie I liked enough to watch again, but didn't rise to the upper echelons 8- Very good. Would watch again and recommend to others 9- Outstanding. Would watch over and over; top 10% of my ratings 10 - A classic. (Less than 2% receive this rating). For Lifetime Movies for Chicks (LMFC), drop the above scale by 3 notches. A 6 is excellent and 7 almost unattainable.

The "Beauty Queen Killer" refers to Christopher Wilder, an Australian-American serial killer who abducted and murdered at least eight young women during a six-week crime spree across the United States in early 1984. Wilder targeted attractive young women, often aspiring models, enticing them with promises of modeling careers. He would then abduct them, often at gunpoint. His victims included beauty queens, models, and other young women.

His crime spree began in Florida and continued across the country. Wilder was known for his charm and ability to gain the trust of his victims. His crimes were meticulously planned, and he often used disguises and assumed different identities.

The case of Christopher Wilder remains a chilling reminder of the dangers that can lurk behind seemingly ordinary individuals.