An Ordinary Killer (2003)

the audience applauded

Best movie of this year hands down!

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

The 27th of January, 1973 in the small town of Ottawa, Michigan. Dee McGuire, a young mother, is abducted by a stranger during a shopping trip into town. Despite searching extensively, the police & the public fail to find any trace of her. Six weeks after, her body is found near a farm. She had been raped & shot three times in the back. Despite an exhaustive investigation, where Detectives Lynn Kendall, Ben Bannister & David Sheridan chase down every possible angle & every lead, they come up frustratingly short. The suspects all have solid alibis & their limited forensic skills at the time fail to produce conclusive proof. The murder weapon is found but is too rusted to be test-fired. And to top that, the main suspect is killed in a motorcycle accident. The case goes cold for nearly twenty-four years before DNA testing & a chance lead on the rusted murder weapon lead the detectives in charge of the case onto whom they believe is the killer.An Ordinary Killer is an attempt to showcase, in an era of police television procedurals that place an emphasis on scientific forensic techniques that look flashy but disregard human investigative skills as antique, what things were like back in the days when DNA testing was unknown & the most advanced forensic testing that was available at the time was basic blood grouping & fingerprints. The film's title might put a lot of people off because of its inherent dullness but it actually is an interesting effort that, despite the slow pace, manages to put a more human dimension on the detectives who worked hard on this & other cases (the film was based on a true story), the killer only being caught due to a chance lead.While the film's concept might be well, ordinary, & the pace is a little on the slow side, the cast all give good performances. DJ Perry's lead might have the habit of talking to himself at times, but everyone manages to deliver the right kind of performance for the production at hand & you'll know they have the right man for the crime when the killer uses a familiar line that is used in a flashback.

I was enthralled by "An Ordinary Killer," the story of a search for a serial murderer, and frankly, I'm usually I'm much put off by all the "serial killer" movies we get flooded with all the time. This one, though, was different (and based on a true story). It was more than just a whodunit or a "sympathy for the victims' friends and family" type film, though those elements were there. DJ Perry does an excellent job playing a detective, Lynn Kendall, who doggedly looks for a criminal that knows no bounds of "ordinary" human decency. However, the murderer does not seem like an evil monster either but just a plain somebody like you and me. Kendall ultimately comes to realize the potential monster lurks in all of us, though cloaked in everyday garb. His slow realization of this truth forms his arc as a character. Kendall, instead of becoming cynical, ends with hope, knowing that although the beast lurks within humanity, there is also heroism and sacrifice in us all, which triumphs over this evil. "An Ordinary Killer," though not a "big story" or complex drama, is not just an "ordinary" murder mystery either. At it heart, it's a morality tale, a voyage of discovery that urges us onward to see the good, as well as evil, residing in every human soul.

I recently watched this and to be honest I wasn't expecting much after reading a few reviews from another site. I have to admit though that although not a Hollywood caliber movie it was not bad. The acting was decent and the story was interesting, although I had never heard of this crime before. Also, my hat is off to Mr. Perry. I have read some of the comments on this site about him and really don't understand the viciousness of some of them. I don't know Mr. Perry, never met him or anyone associated with his company. But I can tell you that it appears he is doing what he loves to do, and that in itself is a win for him. Mr. Perry, misery loves company and from what I've read there are a lot of miserable people posting here that maybe are jealous that they don't have a career they love as you do. Keep on keeping on Mr. Perry and don't mind the "haters".

This is a plot driven tale of midwestern values applied to a horrible set of real crimes. I for one tire of not only the same bare Los Angeles topography in most films but of the big city f*** you attitudes that are increasingly taken as a societal norm. Well thank god most of the world isn't as messed up (yet) and communities of people often work together for a better good than getting the next Benz or getting into some dope club.Ordinary Killer is like the good part of a funeral; acknowledging the tragic, but recognizing the love and caring that can arise from that same tragedy.