While I normally watch shows on Netflix to relax and unwind from the typical busy life of being in college, the most recent show I binge watched left me on the edge of my seat. In January, Netflix released “Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes” which created major controversy and discussion. Prior to watching this documentary series, I did not know much about Ted Bundy. However, after the four episode series, I am familiar with his full, twisted story. For those who are not familiar, Ted Bundy was an infamous serial killer who murdered 30 young women across numerous states around the 1970s. After years on trial and ten years in the death row, Ted was finally executed in 1989.
I found this documentary to be well done and thorough. It included interviews from journalists/reporters, FBI agents, police officers, individual’s from Ted’s early personal life, and even one of the survivors, Carol DaRonch. The main focus was the audio recordings of Ted being interviewed, which I found shocking and disturbing as he talked about himself in the third person, never admitting to what he did.
The producers of the documentary did an excellent job mapping out the full story of Ted’s crimes. The story begins in Washington, and over the years of lying and escaping his crimes, Ted ends up in Florida. Individual images were shown of each victim, along with location and time period which makes it easy to follow, yet hard to digest as it is such a gruesome story. The documentary did a good job explaining that serial killers do not always look dangerous. Ted was shown as an attractive, smart, charming man. The end of the last episode left me feeling rattled, as it ends saying how you never know who will be a killer.
As a young woman who is the same age as Ted’s prime suspects (most of his victims were young girls ranging from 18 to 22 years old), I found these tapes hard to watch and listen to. The whole time I was watching, I found myself imagining being in the traumatic experience of one of his victims.
Just a few of Ted Bundy’s victims, who deserve to be rembered.
Overall, I would highly recommend The Ted Bundy tapes to those who haven’t seen it. If you are a big fan of suspenseful shows, this is definitely one to add to your list. Even if you typically don’t watch things like this, I found it interesting to learn about one of the nation’s most devious criminals. These stories reminded me of my safety as a young woman on a college campus. People always say there are safety in numbers, to never walk alone at night, and to keep your guard up and they are absolutely right. This series created discussion over a topic everyone should be aware of.