The Case of the Hillside Stranglers

The true chilling story of the "two of a kind", killin' cousins Angelo Buono (Dennis Farina) and Kenneth Bianchi (Billy Zane), better known as the Hillside Stranglers, is told in this TV drama. The movie concentrates on the killers story, as well as on the life of Officer Bob Grogan (Richard Crenna), who investigated their case.

I appreciated how well this followed the true story. Obviously a fair number of things were changed because it was television and had to fit a full narrative in 90 minutes. But still pretty great. I wonder about the German psychic who claimed the killers were "two Italian brothers" -- was that real??

This film has a quirky Billy Zane, early in his career. Zane has had his highs and lows, and I would put this among his better parts. This film could possibly be released to DVD and do okay.

And then we have Farina with a big mustache; to many viewers, he might seem perhaps a bit old to be Zane's cousin. However, in real life the stranglers were about twenty years apart, so this is quite accurate. I love how easily a former police officer can play a cold-blooded crook.

Case of the Hillside Stranglers, The (1989)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Extremely well-acted and dramatic made-for-TV flick about the cousins (Dennis Farina, Billy Zane) who stalked Northern L.A. back in 1978-79 and ended up murdering a total of ten people. Richard Crenna plays Sgt. ob Grogan, the man put on the case who slowly finds everything slipping away when a lack of evidence causes the D.A. to worry about going forward with charges. I remember watching this movie when it first showed up on television but I really couldn't remember too much about it nearly twenty years later. I was pleasantly surprised to see how well the film held up over time and it actually managed to be quite dramatic from start to finish. Anyone who knows anything about the real case will say this movie portrayals everything fairly accurately and this helps the drama because it's also unbelievable how this case eventually turned out. I think the film's strongest aspect is that it pretty much gives equal time to everything involved here. We get to spend time with the killers, spend time with the police trying to crack the case but we also get to peak in at Grogan's personal life and the effect this case had on it. I thought the film managed to play all sides and for the most part we get a pretty full knowledge of everything that happened and I think we also get to know the killers quite well. The movie manages to be quite intense not only as the police try to crack down but also with the killers stalking their victims. The direction by Gethers is extremely good as he manages to keep everything moving very quickly but he also fills the film with some great atmosphere and really manages to put you right in the middle of everything going on. Crenna gives a very good performance in the role of the cop as his energy is right on target and you can believe everything he does. Zane and Farina are extremely good as the killers and you can't help but see and feel the cold blood running through their veins. Both actors really dig deep into the role and comes off quite chilling.

A made for TV stinker with some good actors wasted by poor writing and directing. Even the musical score stinks. The story is compelling, but the treatment isn't. There aren't any spoilers in here. The odor comes directly from the movie.

Firstly, remember this is a made-for-TV film of 1989 - meaning it's mildly graphic and only hints at the horror the women faced before their deaths.

Secondly, stellar casting! The story was well written - we know basically what really happened from this film (though it's not 100% accurate). Cinematography and directing done well!

Third, My heart goes out to the victims and their families.

Fourth, Angelo Buono died in prison -- he's finally gone. Kenneth Bianchi is still alive today (2023) and I hope he meets Death soon. Neither deserved life for their sadistic murders, in my opinion.

A film worth watching if you are interested in real life serial killer stories.

8/10.

Caught it on Amazon Prime and it stinks of low rent made for TV cheese.

I'll keep it short, it has a recognizable cast doing phone-in performances and direction that does a very good job of making a film about serial killers anything but titillating, ominous, or entertaining.

There should be at least a little fascination of the morbid kind that goes with films like this. Instead it's a bore.