Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer
{{Short description|1992 documentary film by Nick Broomfield}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer
| image = AileenWuornosTheSellingOfASerialKiller1993Poster.jpg
| alt =
| caption = US film poster
| director = Nick Broomfield
| producer =
| writer = Nick Broomfield
| starring = Aileen Wuornos
Nick Broomfield
| music =
| cinematography = Barry Ackroyd
| editing =
| studio =
| distributor =
| released = {{Film date|1992|11}}
| runtime = 87 minutes
| country =
| language = English
| budget =
| gross =
}}
Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer is a 1992 documentary film about Aileen Wuornos, made by Nick Broomfield. It documents Broomfield's attempts to interview Wuornos, which involves a long process of mediation through her adoptive mother, Arlene Pralle, and her lawyer, Steve Glazer.
The film essentially highlights the exploitation of Wuornos by those around her and questions the fairness of her trial, given the vested interests of the police.
The film was used by the defense in the Wuornos trial in 2001 to highlight the incompetence of Wuornos' original lawyer. It was through this process that Broomfield decided to make a second film, Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer.
For the feature film Monster, Charlize Theron used this film as source material, apparently watching clips in-between takes in order to perfect her character. For her performance, Theron won a Best Actress Oscar, awarded on what would have been Wuornos's birthday.{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0340855/awards |title = Monster - Awards - IMDb| website=IMDb }}{{cite web |url=http://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/wuornos805.htm |title = Aileen Carol Wuornos #805}}
Synopsis
{{Empty section|date=May 2021}}
Cast
- Aileen Wuornos as herself{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103634/fullcredits#cast |title = Aileen Wuornos: Selling of a Serial Killer (1992) - Full Cast & Crew - IMDb| website=IMDb }}
- Nick Broomfield as himself – Interviewer
- Jesse Aviles as himself (Jesse "The Human Bomb" Aviles)
- Cannonball as himself
- Steve Glazer as himself
- Sgt. Brian Jarvis as himself
- Michael McCarthy as himself
- Dick Mills as himself
- Arlene Pralle as herself
- Mike Reynolds as himself
Reception
=Critical response=
{{Rotten Tomatoes prose|100|7.9|9|ref=yes|access-date=February 25, 2024}} The documentary holds a 6.9/10 weighted rating based on 3000 reviews on IMDb.{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103634/?ref_=tt_urv |title=Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer |website=IMDb |access-date=February 25, 2024}}
Awards
- 1993 – Nominated for the Grand Jury Prize for Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|0103634|Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer}}
- [http://www.nickbroomfield.com Official Nick Broomfield website]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20090703120136/http://nfb.ca/film/capturing_reality_nick_broomfield/ Nick Broomfield on meeting Aileen Wuornos] (Video interview from Capturing Reality: The Art of Documentary)
{{Nick Broomfield}}{{Aileen Wuornos media}}
Category:1992 documentary films
Category:1990s English-language films
Category:Documentary films about serial killers
Category:Documentary films about women
Category:Documentary films about prostitution in the United States
Category:Documentary films about lesbians
Category:Documentary films about post-traumatic stress disorder
Category:Documentary films about violence against women
Category:Films directed by Nick Broomfield
Category:Films about Aileen Wuornos
Category:American LGBTQ-related documentary films
Category:1992 LGBTQ-related films