“Ted Bundy Tapes”: Netflix’s cover on the case

BY ELENA VALDEZ

Ted Bundy: former social worker, political campaign activist, law student and— most notably— one of America’s most infamous serial killers.

The serial killer who terrorized young women from Washington to Florida has managed to score a Netflix special. The four-part series, “Conversations with a Killer: Ted Bundy Tapes,” is a chronological narrative of the murders committed by Bundy in the 70s and early 80s.

It is a beautifully edited collection of tapes, ranging from old news coverage of the crime scenes to exclusive interviews with Bundy’s former lawyer and the many investigators involved in the case. The blend of the old and new creates a thorough and conclusive backbone to the story. However, the series relies heavily on the words of others and proposes no new reasoning as to why Bundy brutalized so many young women at the time.

The series builds Bundy up to be a terrifying, absolutely chaotic man toward the end— reckless and still hesitant to accept that he was caught.

Bundy loved the attention that journalist Stephen Michaud, his interviewer, gave him but only cared to clear his name.  He painted himself in such an ordinary light, claiming he was no different than any other boy his age when, clearly, that was not the case. It was not until Michaud asked “What kind of individual would do this,” that Bundy begins to open up, under the blanket of security that is talking in the third person.

The show fails to offer extensive insight into why he did end up committing these violent crimes.

Bundy, despite portraying himself as a stable and normal individual, was deeply disturbed. As time prevails and he is no longer able to cover his tracks, his true colors begin to show. The series builds Bundy up to be a terrifying, absolutely chaotic man toward the end— reckless and still hesitant to accept that he was caught.

The beginning, however, is contradictory. Growing up for Bundy had largely meant learning to hide in plain sight. He was aware he was different, yet he still refused to admit this. The awkwardness of never fitting in when he was a kid, the obsession with pornography that soon turned violent and the desire to be in power all hold weight in what caused Bundy to eventually kill women.

He did manage to conform, which is what makes him so terrifying. He at one point did hide in plain sight and evaded punishment by law multiple times.

The footage used to create each individual episode offers an experience that is hard to find. The switching between interviews and narration over collections of pictures keeps the viewers actively engaged.

The show fails to offer extensive insight into why he did end up committing these violent crimes. Although Bundy himself does briefly explain what he believes would draw a man to rape and kill women, the rest of the series fails to elaborate on this. Bundy was given the security of describing his crimes in the third person, never having to admit what he did, but merely hiding behind a theory of what could have led an individual to do these things.

The footage used to create each individual episode offers an experience that is hard to find. The switching between interviews and narration over collections of pictures keeps the viewers actively engaged.

For avid true crime fans and those familiar with the Ted Bundy case, the show offers little new knowledge. It is an elongated, extremely detailed timeline of the beginning and end of Bundy. If one is looking to understand the motivation behind the murders and the psychological state of a killer, they are probably better off reading a book on abnormal psychology and drawing their own conclusions. But, if one is only looking to find out what happened, the “Ted Bundy Tapes” are the perfect place to look.

Photo courtesy of The Sunflower