Capturing the Killer Nurse

"Capturing the Killer Nurse" is the kind of documentary you watch with a bucket of popcorn, only to realize halfway through that maybe popcorn wasn't the right choice for a film about a nurse who's less about the TLC and more about the R. I. P. It's an okay watch-think of it as a true crime podcast but with visuals, so you no longer have to imagine what everyone looks like. The documentary does a commendable job of laying out the timeline and facts, like a Wikipedia article with a budget for dramatic reenactments and suspenseful music scores.

However, the film struggles to find its unique voice in the crowded room of true crime documentaries. It's like going to a costume party and finding out three other people wore the same "Killer Nurse" outfit. You appreciate the effort, but wish there was a bit more originality in the presentation. The interviews, reconstructions, and archival footage are all well and good, but they never quite elevate the material beyond the expected tropes. It's akin to a chef meticulously recreating a classic dish but forgetting that secret ingredient that makes you say, "Wow, I need the recipe!"

In the end, "Capturing the Killer Nurse" earns a solid 3.5 stars. It's the documentary equivalent of a B-minus student: reliable, does what's expected, but won't particularly astonish you with new insights or methods. You'll walk away informed, perhaps a little entertained, but unlikely to rush to your friends to discuss it. It's the perfect background noise for folding laundry or scrolling through your phone-capable of capturing your attention in brief spurts, but not guilty of stealing your entire evening.

I watched this having watched the film in which Eddie Redmayne started as Charles Cullen.

I'm glad I did it this way round, so many things I found hard to believe in the film, were actually true, the film wasn't sensationalised, it seemed to stick quite rigidly to the content.

What a documentary should be, thought provoking, dramatic, revealing, and a little bit shocking, some parts of it were actually hard to fathom, that is one messed up system.

Amy Loughren's thoughts were astonishing the whole way through, once again, I'm speechless at how rotten the establishment was, how many lives could have been saved.

One thing the film didn't really get into was Cullen's motivation, you will actually hear that in his own words here, the interview sequences were astonishing I thought. What a curious guy, I'd like to see more on him, to try and understand him a little better, he's impossible to piece together.

8/10.

First of all, when I first watched the official teaser of the documentary I liked it and I had high expectations about it. Eventually, it was as good as I had imagined and I liked it. The plot of the documentary was very interesting and mysterious. The storyline was well-written, well-explained and everything was accurate. I have to admit, it was a kinda intense documentary, especially the ending part. In my opinion, it was a nice crime documentary and it wasn't boring. The ending part was kinda predictable, but it was emotionally intense. Overall, "Capturing the Killer Nurse" was a nice documentary and I would probably recommend it to my friends.

It's difficult to tell just how accurate this documentary is. I take it that it's pretty accurate, since the original people were involved and most did not try to hide their shame at being unwittingly involved with this man's murders.

What's missing though is more in-depth information about his childhood, his psychological motivations, or other things that makes criminal pathology a fascinating field. His motivation is so meagerly discussed it's almost non-existent. Anyone trying to get into the mind of the killer will be disappointed here.

What I am most shocked at is that criminal investigations were not brought against the hospitals and administrators that suspected (ie knew) this was going on and just passed him on to other hospitals. They would seem as responsible for those deaths as the murderer, yet not a one of them has been brought to trail? That is so unthinkable that it galls.

All in all a reasonable documentary, but it leaves quite a bit out that would have made the rather slow-moving commentary more interesting and informative. We know the story, but little about the "why" (other than the killer was seriously warped, of course). The fact that his murders were at times random was an indication there was far more going on here than basic mercy killings. The documentary would have done well to delve deeper into the psychology and motivation of that part of this story.

Netflix, shortly after releasing "the Good Nurse", featuring Eddie Redmayne and Jessica Chastain, put forth a documentary about the same events. The documentary follows Charles Cullen, an ICU nurse, who jumps hospitals every time he gets into trouble and finds most of his work in intensive care units, which handle patients with severe or life-threatening illnesses or injuries.

Cullen is mostly described by his coworkers as smart but corky, and a bit weird however overall a good nurse. He has a certain panacea for pharmaceuticals particularly remembering the name use of the medicines even for the rare ones.

After graduating with a nursing degree in 1986, Cullen started working for St Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston. He went on a killing spree from 1986 until his arrest in December 2003. He repeatedly claimed that he wanted to end patients' lives to end their suffering, nonetheless, he killed patients who were getting better and sometimes as young as 21 years old.

Over the years he confessed to killing 40 people. Although when considering the time frame of roughly about 16 years of nursing and the relative ease of killing his patients, he is assumed to kill more than 400 people.