Killer: A Journal of Murder

Firstly , I would say James Woods was totally mis-cast in this movie . I always enjoy Mr Woods in movies but this was not his to own . He couldn't pull it off in the aggressive , madman scenes that required the actor to lose it . Carl Panzram was unique , maybe an unknown actor with nothing to lose would have been better suited . I was never afraid of Woods ! Not at any moment , I don't think the guards were either . In fact , he was kind of an o.k guy , Carl on the other hand would have made you feel very " uneasy " . The director humanized Carl too much , we never really felt his anger , isolation , resentment or his selfishness . We just saw mr woods trying to be a rebel without a cause . To tell this story , every morning Mr Woods should have stripped bare and let the cast throw their "do do " at him and shout " action " .

Very good movie. Very underrated. I love James Woods, and I can believe I didn't know about that one. Thank you Netflix for bringing back decent cinema.

This is my first post but i felt i needed to when it comes to this movie. First i didn't know anything about the real story behind the movie before i watched it, so i cant take this into consideration. What i can say is that i have seen thousands of movies, and that this is one of my top 10. why? James Woods. He is this movie from start to finish. His performance is breathtaking, and you go from loving him to hating him i 2 seconds. Some of the scenes i have seen so many times and makes me react the same way ever time. I don't want to give anything more away so please go and see this movie, i promise u will not

James Woods is again at his best in this very interesting and captivating movie of one mans flight through life, comes to the sad ending he always thought he deserved. Befriended by only two people in his life, he truly had a heart under what everyone believed to be plain meanness.

The Australian biopic "Chopper" got all the hype in 2000, but the much lesser-known " A Journal of Murder" is actually a better film on a similar subject. For one thing, it gives you more of a background about (if not much more insight into) the killer, and for another it doesn't try to make him appear "cool". In fact, the script is quite uncompromising in the way it refuses to humanize Panzram, at least beyond the minimum degree required. But despite Woods' strong performance and a few nice directorial touches (especially in the use of black-and-white cinematography and newsreels from the period), the film is rather flat - almost like a TV production. (**1/2)

This movie seems more relevant today than ever. Prison conditions may have improved since the early part of the century, but prison populations are increasing exponentially and there seems to be no end in sight. Does punishment really prevent crime? Can harden criminals be rehabilitated? Is society to blame? Whatever your opinion, this is a short but must-see film.

Carl Panzram was a viscous creep with a real life bite-your-face-off attitude. Woods played him to smithereens. Sure he overacted a bit, but Panzram was not the most laid-back guy. The problem with this film is that it couldn't decide if it was a character study or a condemnation of prison conditions. They also managed to throw in religious bigotry and left-wing politics. It did it better than some films would have, but the ending left too much open. Woods owned the film. He had Carl as both Genius and loose cannon. The real Panzram was similar. And many quotes contributed to him are scattered about the film. ("I wish you all had one neck..." "I could hang a dozen men...") Leonard did an adequate job as Henry Lesser but played him a bit to "nice." Most of the guards kept their distance from ol' Carl. With good reason too. Woods fans see this now. Anyone else...your call.