Her Campus Logo Her Campus Logo
Culture > Entertainment

Review of “Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes”

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UK chapter.

As a true crime fan I had been looking for the Netflix release of the new Ted Bundy focused docuseries. However, the series was not necessarily what I expected it to be.

 

The series talks to journalists, detectives and agents that worked on the case in the 1960s-70s. A major part of the series is the playing of interview tapes with Ted Bundy; in these tapes we hear Bundy’s point of view and opinion on the events.

 

While the series does mention his victims and the crimes that were done against them, the show is largely focused on Ted Bundy and his trial. The audience receives some background information on Bundy, but the majority is based on his capture and time in jail.

 

His intelligence was often commented on and the show depicts him being treated more as an equal than as a murderer. Bundy is also critiqued for his desire to become famous and his use of crime to achieve that goal. This critique is ironic to me as this series seems glamorizes Bundy as a person.

 

Creating any show or documentary about serial killers or murderers can be tricky. The creator wants to share what the perpetrator did and provide insight into who they were, but does not want to make it seem as though they idol the killer as well.

 

In my opinion, however, it does not seem as though this series does well to not glamorize Bundy and his actions. I may be looking too deep into it or over analyzing the show, so please send me your opinions and let me know what you think!

My hair is usually frizzy and I’m usually craving coffee. I’m a senior at U.K. majoring in Secondary Education with a focus in Social Studies and minoring in Anthropology. I’m so happy to be writing for HerCampus, and so blessed to be on our executive board for my senior year!