''The Hillside Strangler'' is a 2004 horror film directed by Chuck Parello and written by Stephen Johnston, based on the true story of

Kenneth Bianchi Kenneth Alessio Bianchi (born May 22, 1951) is an American serial killer, kidnapper, and rapist. He is known for the Hillside Strangler murders committed with his cousin Angelo Buono Jr. in Los Angeles, California, as well as for murdering two mor ...

and

Angelo Buono Jr. Angelo Anthony Buono Jr. (October 5, 1934 – September 21, 2002) was an American serial killer, kidnapper and rapist who, together with his adopted cousin Kenneth Bianchi, were known as the Hillside Stranglers. Buono and Bianchi were convicte ...

, the

Hillside Strangler The Hillside Strangler, later the Hillside Stranglers, is the media epithet for one, later discovered to be two, American serial killers who terrorized Los Angeles, California, between October 1977 and February 1978, with the nicknames originating ...

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

s. The film stars

C. Thomas Howell Christopher Thomas Howell (born December 7, 1966) is an American actor. He has starred in the films '' Soul Man'', '' The Hitcher'', '' Grandview U.S.A.'', ''Red Dawn'', ''Secret Admirer'' and '' The Outsiders''. He has also appeared in '' Gett ...

as Bianchi and

Nicholas Turturro Nicholas Turturro Jr. (born January 29, 1962) is an American actor, known for his roles in New York City based films and on the television series '' Blue Bloods'' and ''NYPD Blue''. He has collaborated with director Spike Lee since the late 1980s ...

as Buono.

Plot

At the end of the 70s,

psychopath Psychopathy, sometimes considered synonymous with sociopathy, is characterized by persistent Anti-social behaviour, antisocial behavior, impaired empathy and remorse, and Boldness, bold, Disinhibition, disinhibited, and Egotism, egotistical B ...

Kenneth Bianchi (

) lives with his mother Frances (

Roz Witt Roz Witt is an American television and film actress. She has appeared in minor roles in the television series ''Monk'', '' Desperate Housewives'', ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', '' Judging Amy'', ''The X-Files'', '' Diagnosis: Murder'', '' ...

) and is obsessed with joining the police force. When his application is refused, his mother sends him to Los Angeles to live with his

sadistic Sadism may refer to: * Sadomasochism, the giving or receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation * Sadistic personality disorder, an obsolete term proposed for individuals who derive pleasure from the s ...

cousin Angelo Buono (

). Kenneth unsuccessfully tries to join LAPD, and Angelo convinces him to start a prostitution business with him. They force Erin (

Jennifer Tisdale Jennifer Kelly Tisdale (born September 18, 1981) is an American actress and singer who is known for her role as Chelsea in the comedy film '' Bring It On: In It to Win It''. Early life and career Tisdale was born in Neptune City, New Jersey, th ...

) and April (Jessica Allegra), two girls from Tucson to work for them, but when they intrude on the territory of another prostitution ring led by Ronnie (Damon Whitaker), their business is destroyed and their money is stolen. The frustrated Kenneth and Angelo decide on revenge against Gabrielle (

Kent Masters King Kent Masters King (born August 5, 1974) is an American actress known for her appearances on the daytime soap opera ''General Hospital''. Early life Kent was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Her father, Dr. Richard D. King, is an Egy ...

) the prostitute who put them into competition with Ronnie, and Kenneth strangles her, feeling a great pleasure with her death. The two cousins become addicted to murder, initially killing prostitutes and then attacking single women, dumping their bodies on the hill.

Cast

* Marisol Padilla Sánchez as Christina Chavez ( Veronica Compton) * Allison Lange as Claire Shelton (Kelli Boyd) *

as Erin (Sabra Hannan) *

as Gabrielle ( Yolanda Washington) *

Aimee Brooks Aimee Brooks (born November 19, 1974) is an American former actress. She is mostly known for her roles in horror movies, including the lead protagonist in ''Critters 3''. Her most recent film is '' Closed for the Season'' in 2010. Aimee Brooks a ...

as Felicia Waller ( Cindy Hudspeth) *

Natasha Melnick Natasha Melnick (born April 10, 1984) is an American television and film actress, best known for her role as Cindy Sanders on the short-lived 1999 NBC comedy drama ''Freaks and Geeks''. Career Melnick was born in Los Angeles, California. She gr ...

as Karyn ( Lauren Wagner) * Damon Whitaker as Ronnie * Brandin Rackley as Janice Cooley (

Judy Miller Judith Miller (born January 2, 1948) is an American journalist and commentator known for her coverage of Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) program both before and after the 2003 invasion, which was later discovered to have been based on ...

) * Jessica Allegra as April (Becky Spears) *

as Frances Bianchi *

Lin Shaye Linda Shaye (born October 12, 1943) is an American film, television, and theater actress. In a career spanning over forty years, she has appeared in more than a hundred feature films. She is perhaps best known for her starring role as Elise Rain ...

as Jenny Buono * Geneviere Anderson as Tina Mayfield ( Kimberly Martin) * Julia Lee as Lisa Erwin (Diane Wilder) * Kelly Lohman as Sue Radigan (Karen Mandic) *

Tricia Dickson Tricia Dickson (born January 3, 1982) is an American voice actress. For a brief time, she was also a cast member of the Nickelodeon sketch comedy series, ''All That''. Roles Anime *'' Angel Tales'' - Akane the Fox *''Girls Bravo'' - Lilica Stacy ...

as Heather Brewer

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hillside Strangler 2004 films Biographical films about serial killers 2000s crime films American crime films Crime films based on actual events Cultural depictions of male serial killers Cultural depictions of rapists Cultural depictions of kidnappers Cultural depictions of American men 2000s English-language films 2000s American films