Tales of the Grim Sleeper (Nick Broomfield, 2014): USA/UK

Reviewed by Kate Michael. Viewed at the Egyptian Theater, Hollywood

Veteran documentary film maker Nick Broomsfield’s latest film, Tales of the Grim Sleeper, may be his best yet. In the establishing shot, we are taken on a Google Earth journey that starts with the Earth in space and ends with an image of accused serial killer, Lonnie Franklin, in the front yard of his house in South Central Los Angeles. It is thought that between the years of 1985 and 2010 Franklin, also known as the Grim Sleeper, killed ten to one hundred women in his own neighborhood. The broadness of that number alone is perplexing, let alone the fact that no one in the neighborhood was aware a serial killer was roaming the streets. For nearly a decade the bodies of murdered women continued to surface and not a single arrest was made nor was any associate of the Grim Sleeper questioned.  The film goes on to explore the life of Lonnie Franklin, the people that knew him and how it was possible for him to get away with the murder and torture of so many women for twenty five years.

Like many other documentaries, the film is presented as a collage of still images, courtroom footage, and Broomfield’s own footage including numerous interviews of friends, neighbors and surviving victims of the Grim Sleeper. Unlike his other films, Broomsfield takes the backseat to story telling and lets the locals tell it in their own words. Pam, a former prostitute and crack addict, makes as many connections to the Grim Reaper’s victims as possible for the sake of the film. Having targeted addicts and prostitutes she visits the spots she used to frequent, hoping to find more survivors. Pam is a colorful, funny, intelligent woman who cannot vote, obtain public housing, or find a job due to her past. We also meet Margaret Prescod, a community activist for the Black Coalition Fighting Back Serial Murders. She puts into perspective the injustice of the situation by asking the viewer how the situation may have been handled had the victims been white women from a more affluent area.

While the films primarily sheds light on the Grim Sleeper case, it serves as just one of many infuriating examples of the injustice Americans have come to tolerate as an ordinary part of life. It’s truly sickening that a battle must be fought to prove that every human life has value and deserves respect. Broomsfield joins in this fight not only by making this film but by choosing to tell this story through some of the women who have experienced it first-hand. Often in documentaries we see “experts” on the subject who have letters or ivy league schools following their name. While it is obvious that they are utilized as credible, scholarly sources, Broomsfield lets these ladies shine and allows the audience to discover an intelligence most probably didn’t know existed in women who often live on the street. Consequently, these women convince us in their own words that they are valuable and they advocate for themselves. For those who enjoys documentaries, for those who abhor ignorance, and for those moved by a touching story–I recommend this film highly.