I followed the BTK case as it unfolded in 2004-2005 and I believed this movie would be too real for me to watch. However, for good or bad, there was little that actually brought back those memories in this movie aside from the performance of Kane Hodder. He was believable in the role of Dennis Rader. Aside from Kane Hodder (Friday the 13th), the acting was terrible.

I read reviews that stated how happy people were that the script writers stuck so well to the actual story of BTK. While I’m glad the names of the victims and exact circumstances of their deaths were left out of the film, I’m sorry to disagree with everyone. B.T.K. was very far from the actual story. The script writers had thirty years, minus the ten years he was silent, to work with. It felt like they grabbed a few facts and threw them into whatever story they wanted to tell and the story wasn’t a good one.

The sound left much to be desired as well.

Synopsis:

Inspired by the events surrounding the serial killer Dennis Rader, known by the moniker B.T.K. (bind, torture, kill).

WTF Moments:

Were those mountains I just saw in the plains of Wichita and Park City, Kansas? Really?

Wait, was that a palm tree?

Dennis Rader actually has a daughter and a son. Why was it changed to two daughters? Odd.

A hooker? And he couldn’t kill her? Maybe I missed something, but I don’t remember B.T.K. ever letting anyone live unless it was an accident (the man he shot that lived), he got impatient (the woman he waited on for hours who never came home), or the phone ringing (two kids he planned to kill, but left when the phone rang).

BTK didn’t kill anyone after 1991. He was planning to right before he was caught in 2005, but the movie makes it seem like he killed one person after another until he was caught. There could have been a very interesting story in there about the years between 1991 and 2005. Probably not the story most people would want to see though. I understand crunching 30 years into a short period of time in the movie for the sake of time and pacing, but it still disappoints me.

On Netflix, B.T.K. is listed as “inspired by actual events.” However, at the end of the movie the usual “this is a work of fiction and any resemblance to anyone living or dead is a coincidence” verbage can be seen. Seriously?

Redeeming Qualities:

The only real redeeming quality I could find was Kane Hodder.

Last Words:

I really felt like this movie had very little to do with B.T.K. and much more to do with making money off his name. Dennis Rader is the most “normal Joe” of the serial killers which could make for a very boring movie, but I still think there’s a lot there to work with and a decent film that’s closer to reality could be made. If that movie is ever made, I don’t think I could bring myself to watch it. Since I lived through this and followed what was going on, it makes me feel dirty. I devour serial killer movies, but those based on reality leave a bad taste in my mouth.

But I still watch them. I wonder what that says about me?