60 years old Dennis Lynn Rader, was a model Wichita's citizen, suburban Park City's compliance officer, former Kanzas Cup Scout leader and the president of the local Lutheran Congregation Council, yet the neighborhood's ultimate nightmare.
The four members of Joseph Otero's family killed in early 1974 were first victims of the B.T.K. strangler. The killing spree in the area that further spanned throughout the following seventeen years has abruptly ended in 1991.
Despite tireless and meticulous investigation the police had failed to reveal the murderer's identity that time and the the case was remaining one of FBI's top unsolved mysteries until the killer resurfaced again in early 2004.
In an attempt to draw media attention he sent a letter to Wichita's local news room claiming credits for a number of unsolved murders. This has triggered resumption of investigation and eventually led to detention of Dennis Rader who was accused of murdering at least ten people between 1974 and 1991.
The account of Rader's crimes were dramatized in two feature movies released in 2005 the year when Rader was sentenced to 10 consecutive life terms.
'The Hunt for the BTK Killer' focuses more on exhibiting Rader's sweet facade as a considerate family man, meticulous civil servant and committed community leader rather than elaborate depiction of grisly acts he has committed to materialize his sick sexual fantasies (which are only sporadically shown in flashbacks in the course of the court proceedings).
The film features memorable, impeccable performance from (hardly recognizable - kudos to the wizards from the makeup department) Greg Henry as the aged killer. He made it to alter flawlessly between mild mannered, affable and respectable Wichita's resident and sinister, calculating shape-shifter contriving a cat and mouse game with the police.
He could have managed to further evade justice unless his paranoid lust for limelight has eventually exposed his disguise.
Only a mere accident and Rader's computer illiteracy has enabled the forensic lab experts to derive a badly wiped out file from a dumped floppy and identify the BTK strangler.
The killer's shocking revelations at the interrogation room about his frightening past when he refers to his poor victims as the "projects" are presented in a semi-documentary manner.
Of course the creators of the film took some liberty in simplifying the story and adapting it to the TV movie format, modifying some details and introducing fictional elements and characters like collective figure of Det. Madiga convincingly played by veteran actor Robert Forster.
Nonetheless it is pretty accurate in providing insight to the tragic events that has kept Kanzans on tenterhooks for over three decades. I guess it deserves to take a worthy place among the best examples of TV true crime dramas like 'The Deliberate Stranger' (Bundy), 'Out of the Darkness' (Berkowitz), 'To Catch A Killer' (Gacy) and 'Manhunt: Search for the Night Stalker' (Ramirez).
The four members of Joseph Otero's family killed in early 1974 were first victims of the B.T.K. strangler. The killing spree in the area that further spanned throughout the following seventeen years has abruptly ended in 1991.
Despite tireless and meticulous investigation the police had failed to reveal the murderer's identity that time and the the case was remaining one of FBI's top unsolved mysteries until the killer resurfaced again in early 2004.
In an attempt to draw media attention he sent a letter to Wichita's local news room claiming credits for a number of unsolved murders. This has triggered resumption of investigation and eventually led to detention of Dennis Rader who was accused of murdering at least ten people between 1974 and 1991.
The account of Rader's crimes were dramatized in two feature movies released in 2005 the year when Rader was sentenced to 10 consecutive life terms.
'The Hunt for the BTK Killer' focuses more on exhibiting Rader's sweet facade as a considerate family man, meticulous civil servant and committed community leader rather than elaborate depiction of grisly acts he has committed to materialize his sick sexual fantasies (which are only sporadically shown in flashbacks in the course of the court proceedings).
The film features memorable, impeccable performance from (hardly recognizable - kudos to the wizards from the makeup department) Greg Henry as the aged killer. He made it to alter flawlessly between mild mannered, affable and respectable Wichita's resident and sinister, calculating shape-shifter contriving a cat and mouse game with the police.
He could have managed to further evade justice unless his paranoid lust for limelight has eventually exposed his disguise.
Only a mere accident and Rader's computer illiteracy has enabled the forensic lab experts to derive a badly wiped out file from a dumped floppy and identify the BTK strangler.
The killer's shocking revelations at the interrogation room about his frightening past when he refers to his poor victims as the "projects" are presented in a semi-documentary manner.
Of course the creators of the film took some liberty in simplifying the story and adapting it to the TV movie format, modifying some details and introducing fictional elements and characters like collective figure of Det. Madiga convincingly played by veteran actor Robert Forster.
Nonetheless it is pretty accurate in providing insight to the tragic events that has kept Kanzans on tenterhooks for over three decades. I guess it deserves to take a worthy place among the best examples of TV true crime dramas like 'The Deliberate Stranger' (Bundy), 'Out of the Darkness' (Berkowitz), 'To Catch A Killer' (Gacy) and 'Manhunt: Search for the Night Stalker' (Ramirez).