the audience applauded

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

I really enjoyed this piece! Rachel Mills and Joshua Zeman do an excellent job of examining several urban legends and the crimes that may have inspired them. I would really like to see them turn this into a series that explores true crimes and studies the twisting of the facts by the general public. Rachel and Joshua take a first person role in examining the facts and perceptions surrounding several high profile murders that spawned or at the very least bolstered urban legends such as the man with the hook, the babysitter and the caller and 'killer clown'. Their objective look at these is very believable and I think would do well in an ongoing examination of other high profile crimes and how facts get twisted in the retelling.

I decided that I needed to watch the Killer Legends documentary tonight. This was a serendipitous choice, it seems, since I just recently watched the meta sequel to The Town That Dreaded Sundown (sharing the same title), considering that this documentary begins with an exploration into that particular series of murders in Texarkana. It goes on from there to a chilling story of a real life incident of a child dying on Halloween night from poisoned candy as well as the basis for the urban legends that provide the substrate for numerous movies including When a Stranger Calls. This was a terrific documentary about a truly fascinating subject...and I wish that I had thought to do it myself. It would be an absolutely captivating thing to do with my time, traveling around and investigating the horrifying real life crimes that have birthed the numerous urban legends we grow up hearing and sharing with others.

This was a screener that I was really looking forward to. If there's something I love, it's a good horror-based documentary. I love learning, and there's nothing better to learn about then anything horror. In this case, Killer Legends, takes you all over the place, from Texas to Missouri, to Chicago investigating and finding the truth behind some of the cruelest urban legends. I've seen a lot of narratives before, but never one that dug to find the ugly truth that inspired some of the most chilling stories ever told. So this was a treat, and it's incredibly well made.Joshua Zeman (Cropsey 2009) and Rachel Mills (American Pickers 2012) take you on a journey that makes you face the harsh reality that real life is far worse than any scary story made up. Also, that any tall tale is always based on some truth, which is always more horrifying. When watching, I couldn't help but reflect how screwed up we are as a species to do the things we do. Killer Legends shows you that you don't have to be scared of the monster in your closet, or the creepy clown doll under your bed, because human beings and what they're capable of, trump all else.We learn about The Hookman, and the danger of sex amongst teens. In 1946, a killer known as The Phantom murders four couples on Lover's Lane, claiming five victims. He was never caught, and the incidents have been dubbed the Moonlight Murders. These killings are what inspired the motion picture, The Town that Dreaded Sundown, because The Phantom always wore a mask.Then we get schooled about the Candyman urban legend, where a man gives poison to children in Halloween candy. The sickening truth behind this involves a father poisoning his son's pixie stick, in order to claim the child's insurance policy. Though some still believe him to be innocent, he was given the death penalty via lethal injection.The Baby-Sitter is one of the most disturbing urban legends by far, as this documentary will teach you that in Columbia Missouri 1950, Jannet Christman was strangled to death with an iron cord. We learn there was a similar strangulation in 1946, only two blocks over from where Chistman would be killed just four years later. Both are said to have probably known the antagonist, because there aren't signs that there was a struggle.The clowns are possibly the most unsettling of all the stories told. We delve into the psyche of why clowns are so creepy, and how it's the perversion of innocence. I didn't even know there was a name for those afraid of clowns, but now I do. It's called coulrophobia. We learn about random kidnappings and sightings all involving men dressed as clowns, to lore children in. And of course, John Wayne Gacy, and his 29 victims are mentioned.There's no point in me ruining all the specific details, so I'll stop there. But, I sincerely liked this feature. The time and effort that went into making it is undeniable. Joshua and Rachel did their homework in this eye-opening docudrama. If you like finding the grit and dirt behind scary stories, there's no reason not to watch it. It's very knowledgeable and informative, as well as unsettling.Killer Legends hits DVD July 1st, so check it out. And beware of the truth.

Delving into our collective nightmares, this horror-documentary investigates the origins of our most terrifying urban legends and the true stories that may have inspired them.A few years ago, Joshua Zeman made "Cropsey", a punch in the gut documentary that started as an examination of an urban legend and turned into a full-scale exposure of something far worse. What many would rather have us forget, Zeman brought to life: a mental facility that was not doing its patients any good, to say the least.This time he is back, examining not one but four urban legends and finding what may just be the truth behind them (or, if nothing else, real events that pushed the legends further into public consciousness). The hook man, the candy poisoner, the babysitter and the killer clown. Each is looked at in some detail (although limited by the film's running time).With the hook, we travel to Texarkana, find a little-known serial killer who was never caught, and explain how fact and fiction were blurred through the film "The Town That Dreaded Sundown". The fact the city annually shows a film about the killer, who could have been alive and attended a performance, is a bit disturbing. And how these "Texarkana Moonlight Murders" are relatively obscure, even for serial killer buffs, is a mystery in itself.In the candy poisoner segment, we learn of the legend of candy tampering, which is just that: a legend. Although circulating for one hundred years, instances are so rare as to be virtually non-existent. And then we have Ronald Clark O'Bryan, the man who took these legends and used them to cover up his real crime... and legend becomes reality.The babysitter story, with a killer being inside the house, is best remembered as the plot for "When a Stranger Calls". Interestingly, we find that babysitters are not likely targets -- perhaps even less likely than the average person. But then the story takes a juicy turn, when we learn of a serial rapist and murderer who preyed on babysitters, and how a town's racial prejudice probably sent the wrong man to prison. This story deserves its own documentary.Lastly, the killer clown. Apparently there is an urban legend (not as well known) of clowns that drive white vans and abduct children. And while they circulate around Chicago, the story cannot be traced to the obvious source of John Wayne Gacy (though he certainly intensified it). Here we never quite get to the root, but along the way learn a great deal about Chicago's history with clowns, which is interesting in itself.This film is every bit as good as "Cropsey", though it does suffer from the format. From the short segments, we are left with one of two impressions (or both): that these needed to be longer but could not be because of running time, and that this was likely supposed to be an ongoing series for Chiller that never came to be. One can easily imagine Zeman traveling to a new town each week and getting to the bottom of an unsolved mystery and an old legend, being the gruesome counterpart to Jan Harold Brunvand.And we hope he does make more.