BY JOSIE DECARO (’19)

“I don’t feel guilty for anything. I feel sorry for people who feel guilt,” serial killer Ted Bundy once said of his crimes.

Controversy continues to persist between the making of the terrifying yet eye-opening Ted Bundy Tapes. This Netflix original documentaries premiered on Jan. 24 and includes four episodes that tell the story of Bundy himself and his heinous crimes.

Throughout this series, there are actual tapes from interviews between Bundy and journalists Stephan Michaud and Hugh Anyesworth, who spent many hours with Bundy in the Florida State Prison. In these tapes Bundy describes himself or the events that had happened in third person. He never admitted to any crimes while recording the tapes until right before he meets his fate at the electric chair, on Jan. 2, 1989.

`Some viewers believe that the focus should be on the lives of the women that were taken instead of bringing fame to Bundy. The fame only fuled him to kill even more. Even after his death the media still obsessed over this killer and how he was able to murder more than 30 women and possibly even more.  

A day after this series was put on Netflix, the trailer for Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile was released, yet another movie about Bundy. Zac Efron stars as Bundy and viewers and are not a fan of the glorification of Bundy’s handsome and cunning personality.

Many people became upset with the fact that Bundy’s actions are being turned into a thriller and he is being glamorized, “I just hope the movie doesn’t glorifies Bundy as the trailer is hinting,” commented Julian Suarez on the Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile Youtube trailer.

Others are eager to get in the theatres to see this thriller.

“Zac is an amazing actor and this movie looks like it harnesses that talent and his good looks really well,” another youtuber comment by Umeedwala.

I agree that it is important that we should be recognizing the lives of women that were brutally taken. Large productions tend to focus more on the killer because it is so intriguing for the viewers how a single person can be so vicious.

It is interesting to learn throughout the story what may have caused cause a person to struggle mentally, whether it is in the past or present.

Many factors can lead to these violent actions such as childhood abuses, relationship abuse  or depression. 1 in 6 adults struggle with mental illness of some kind, according to the Mental Health Foundation.

I think the whole point of this movie is to represent to others on how normal Bundy seemed to everyone. His friends, family and others within his church described him as respectable man “Ted Bundy does not go around killing women and little children!” Bundy’s mother told The News Tribune in 1980.  

It is important to represent how important it is to be aware of your surroundings. I myself, am excited for this movie to come out. I am intrigued to see how they tell Bundy’s story.

This movie can also teach others to not trust strangers, it may even pursue many women or men to be more cautious of where they are and what they are doing.

The neighbor next door might be the nicest and most genuine person you’ve ever met, but you don’t know what goes on behind closed doors.