Released into the world a couple of years after the Zodiac murders ceased and imagining a scenario in which he continues killing in various different ways, "The Zodiac Killer" isn't a movie that prioritizes taste, although there's some twisted enjoyment to be had with it for those who enjoy a good dose of sleaze. David Fincher's "Zodiac", this ain't. Not at all grounded in any reality that students of its subject will recognise, this movie presents the Zodiac's known crimes in a manner befitting the genre and style of the time but scarcely resembling what actually happened. Indeed, this could really be any grimy murder picture retrofitted with Zodiac references. By the time our killer (Hal Reed) is squishing ladies with car bonnets and rolling paralysed men down hills, you're either gonna be aghast or gleeful at how ridiculous and crass it all is. But I have to admit to being in the latter category. This movie is just so terrible and fun that I can't resist it, and seeing director Tom Hanson claim that it was thrown together as some quixotic attempt to lure the real killer to the movie's premier only makes my heart grow fonder. An indefensible film that I recommend.
