The Ripper ( The Yorkshire Ripper )

I have always been fascinated about serial killers. I wish they did not exist, but from a psychological perspective, there are so many questions about their behavior. Why do the kill? Do they feel no remorse? Do they feel proud of what they have done? Do they see themselves as superior over other humans? Only experts could answer these questions, and know how to communicate with serial killers. I have digged myself into a lot of documentary films about serial killers over the years, and there is especially one personality i have always been interested knowing more about, and that is serial killer John Wayne Gacy. Convicted for 33 murders of young boys, between the years of 1972 - 1978. One of the reasons why John Wayne gacy became a well known serial killer, is because he used to dress up as a clown to perform at children´s hospital and charitable events. He was executed by a lethal injection on May 10, 1994. There was actually a really good TV movie made, in 2 parts, called To Catch A Killer with legendary actor Brian Dennehy in the lead role as John Wayne Gacy. This is a 90´s classic TV movie, where we get to see the investigation behind the serial killer, and how he managed to get so many young boys to his home. Well worth picking up on DVD, if you are interested in this case. There was also Another TV Movie made in 2010, simply called Dear Mr. Gacy. An interesting film, in the sense that it tells the story of the relationship John Wayne Gacy had with criminal student Jason Moss ( who wrote letters to serial killers, in an attempt to try and get more information from their crimes ). This film is based on the book by author Jason Moss, and the role of Joh Wayne Gacy was played by legendary actor William Forsythe. Well Worth checking out if you are interested in understanding Gacy´s personality. Since i have seen some mini series on Netflix about murderers, and criminals, i have been curious to see The Ripper ( known as The Yorkshire Ripper ) on Netflix. Especially since i am interested in cases about serial killers. Does this mini series give away a lot of interesting details about these horrible murders, or is there a lot more that should have been told?

In 1975, several women were attacked by an unknown man. On October 30th that year, the body of Wilma McCann was found stabbed. Police begin an investigation on who the killer might be. As the victim numbers begin to grow, and the killer seems to be finiding new victims in many different areas across West Yorkshire and Manchester, a lot of people begin to wonder, how the police will deal with this situation ?

I have heard about the case surrounding The Yorkshire Ripper, but it was not until the early 90´s, when i really started getting interested in books of serial killers. When you hear these stories, with actual facts from the case, you understand what a disturbed personality serial killer Peter Sutcliffe was ( he passed away in November last year, may he burn in hell ). How he managed to murder 13 women, and get away with it for so long is shocking. I understand that back in the 70´s, you only had limited ways to find evidence, since there was no way to find DNA during this time. This mini series manage to tell the stories from both family members of victims, but also from people who worked on these cases, during the investigation. There are especially some details about the pattern of these murders, where you realise what kind of serial killer Peter Sutcliffe was. The brutality and violence he used for each victim, makes you feel sick. One of the things i think that this mini series do well, is to give us a realistic story of how the police had to deal with these chaotic years, not knowing who is behind these horrible crimes. You can see the frustration that some of the people carried along with them, not knowing if they would catch the killer. And i think it is important to show this to the audience, that this was a case that no one really knew how to deal with, since they were not used to serial killers. Did the police do the right choices in their investigation, or could they have done more? I think the best thing to do is to see this mini series yourself, so you can get your own opinion on how you feel. The Ripper is a great choice if you are interested in classic crime stories, and want to dig deeper into what really happened during the investigations. There are a few details that i would have liked to hear more about, but other than that i feel that this mini series offer a very important part of history, that needs to be told. Directors Jesse Vile and Elena Wood know how to tell this story in a professional, and fascinating way. Would say that this is worth checking out on Netflix, if you don´t know what to watch.

Rating: DDD