The Hillside Strangler

Hillside Strangler stands out as hands down one of the all time great true crime films. Chuck Parello plunges the viewer headfirst into the acid guts of sexual sadism, familial dysfunction, and spree killings.

The basic plot follows the rampage of Kenneth Bianchi and Angelo Buono, two cousins who committed some of the most perverted acts of torture and homicide recorded in the annals of American crime. What makes this film stand out so well is how mundane the circumstances provoking their spree happen to be. The murders are presented as a simple, reflexive response to a single act of humiliation.

Parello perfectly captures the tacky, sexually saturated milieu of the mid-1970's. The world in which these crimes occur is one of female objectification, sexual dysfunction, and brazen immorality. By spending some time charting the vapid nature of the cousin's lives - petty existences comprised of orgies, drugs, and non- stop cruising - the eventual segue into murder feels almost natural.

There are some extremely disturbing scenes of rape, humiliation, and murder. However, the story emphasizes psychological and environmental factors just enough that Hillside Strangler approaches the precipice of exploitation without teetering over. It's a delicate balancing act that pushes the film to a level of repulsion it would not have reached if treated as a garden-variety serial killer flick (see Mike Feifer's EXORABLE shot on HD garbage cheapies for an example of the worst case scenario of the latter).

For those who feel that this type of movie trivializes the real pain experienced by real victims, I'll point out that this film only scrapes the surface of Bianchi and Buono's evil. Parello re-stages the crimes to avoid some horrifying details (like, for example, the fact that close to half of their victims were teens - some as young as 12), and allow the audience to empathize with the killers enough to maintain interest.

Hillside is a gem of indie true crime.

Except for victim names, this true-life story of the infamous serial killings in Los Angeles in the late 1970s is mostly factual, and is told from the POV of the two killers: Kenneth Bianchi (C. Thomas Howell) and Angelo Buono (Nicholas Turturro). As such, the film functions largely as a character study of these two criminals. The script is structured as a series of events, in chronological order, beginning with Bianchi's life in upstate New York, where he started out as a petty thief.

Although he apparently tried to live a reasonably normal life, Bianchi felt constantly rejected, especially in his repeated, unsuccessful efforts to join the police force. He tells his mom: "Whatever I do, nothing ever turns out right; sometimes I just want to find some tall building and take a big fall".

His hook-up with Angelo Buono in Los Angeles proves fatal. Buono, a domineering, unctuous brute who haunts the tawdry, seedy areas of LA, persuades Bianchi to go into the hooker business. But that effort backfires as a result of one particular prostitute and as a result, the two men lose their "business". Seeking "payback", they lure into their presence, and then kill, a whole series of women, mostly street hookers, as a way to "settle the score".

Their murder partnership calls to mind the symbiotic relationship between Perry Smith and Dick Hickock, in the film "In Cold Blood" (1967). It was the liaison, the merger of mindsets that ultimately led to the killings.

Some of the scenes in "The Hillside Strangler" are quite graphic. They are hard to watch because the victims are portrayed as real people who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. I think the Director could have spent less time showing us the nude bodies of the victims, which strikes me as gratuitous and unnecessary.

Both C. Thomas Howell and Nicholas Turturro give performances that are credible. Allison Lange, as Bianchi's girlfriend in LA, provides about the only semblance of humanity in this dark story. Toward the film's end, an effort to enact a copycat killing renders an interestingly strange plot twist that presumably really happened.

The entire story is very depressing and disturbing. However, visual shock value notwithstanding, the film's presentation of that story is realistic and credible. It's not for the faint of heart. And the film's story has greater breadth than depth. But as a general overview of events and of the mindset of the two criminals, "The Hillside Strangler" is certainly worth watching.

This film turned out to be much more than I thought that it was going to be, most notably, it was extremely disturbing and at times I found myself not able to watch - particularly the rapes and deaths of the poor women. The Hillside Strangler(s) played their roles well, both utterly convincing and rather frightening. Allison Lange was fantastic as the long-suffering Claire. I wouldn't recommend this film to anyone who is faint-hearted. It was a good film, but so disturbing. There was plenty of nudity, offensive language, drug use and violence splashed throughout the movie, but the treatment of the women was so shocking. For that reason, I cannot give this film a rating.

If you've seen the other serial killer movies by Tartan films, you'll get exactly what you expect from this film: actors you haven't seen in awhile steeped in extreme violence with not a whole lot of emphasis on the facts. There are some gruesome scenes here, though tamer than the actual crimes of the Hillside Stranglers. Pretty good performances all around, but not excellent. Some interesting camera work, better than you'd expect from a film with so low a budget.

I was concerned by the casting of Turturro and Howell, having had a fondness for the earlier portrayals by Dennis Farina and Billy Zane. Plus, C Thomas Howell just seemed too cute to play Ken Bianchi. But once I got a look at him, I was shocked by his gaunt, creepy appearance. I sincerely hope he looks better than that in real life.

To conclude, this is by no means the movie of the year, but if you liked Tartans Gein, Gacy or Bundy, give this one a watch.

In the end of the 70's, the dysfunctional Kenneth Bianchi (C. Thomas Howell) lives with his mother and is obsessed to join the police force. When his application is refused, his mother suggests him to go to Los Angeles to live with his sadistic and perverted cousin Angelo Buono (Nicholas Turturro). Kenneth unsuccessfully tries to join LAPD, and Angelo convinces him to start a prostitution business with him. They force two girls from Tucson to work for them, but their competitors destroy their business and steals their money. The frustrated Kenneth and Angelo decide to revenge against a whore, and Kenneth strangles her, feeling a great pleasure with the act of killing. The two cousins become addicted in death, initially killing whores and then attacking single women, dumping their bodies on the hills of LA.

"The Hillside Strangler' is a low budget movie based on a true event that happened in 1977 in Los Angeles, with the police chasing one serial killer when actually they were two. The disturbing and violent story has many strong moments with the explicit sadism of the two cousins, and sex exploitation with many nudism, but it is well acted and attractive. This movie is not recommended for sensitive persons due to the psychopathic violence, but for those that like a cruel and credible story, it is a good choice. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Estrangulador" ("The Strangler")