Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile review round-up: Zac Efron impresses critics as serial killer Ted Bundy

The film deliberately chooses not to depict his crimes, but focuses on his relationship with a young Seattle woman, Liz Kloepfer

A new film about one of the most notorious serial killers in history, Ted Bundy, has premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to mixed reviews.

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile sees Zac Efron star as Bundy, who is known to have murdered at least 30 women during the 1970s.

However, the film deliberately chooses not to depict his crimes, but focuses on his relationship with a young Seattle woman, Liz Kloepfer (Lily Collins), while also covering his eventual arrest in Florida and his trial, where he was charged with two accounts of first-degree murder.

The film is directed by Joe Berlinger, who is also behind Netflix’s four-part docuseries on the subject, Conversations With a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes.

Although critics have praised Efron’s performance across the board, there has been a mixed reaction to how effectively or sensitively the film deals with Bundy’s disturbing legacy. Here are what critics have said about the film.

The Hollywood Reporter – Todd McCarthy

Not to say that Zac Efron was born to play Ted Bundy, but the former High School Musical teen heartthrob is more than a bit convincing as the seductive, prolific and diabolical serial killer of young women in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.

The Wrap – Carlos Aguilar

This is Efron’s show, with all elements gravitating towards him for better or worse. Despite the inherent flaws in Werwie’s script, Extremely Wicked winds up a thought-provoking piece of cinema that avoids the easy temptation of shock value in favor of a more philosophical take on a diabolical murderer.

Little White Lies – Hannah Woodhead

The star of the show is unquestionably Efron, who captures the charm and manipulative streak which enabled Bundy to murder over 30 women across seven states over a four year timeframe. It’s a theatrical, absorbing performance which works in part because of Efron’s own cultish celebrity, but also because he manages to convey something dark and sinister lurking beneath the polished surface.

Variety – Owen Gleiberman

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile is an honestly unsettling and authentic inquiry into the question of who Ted Bundy was, how he operated, what his capture and trial and ongoing infamy has meant, and what, if anything, his existence tells us about our individual relationship to toxic evil.

AV Club – AA Dowd – C

Berlinger may think he’s taking the non-sensationalized approach by refusing to depict Bundy’s shocking murders. But by only showing us his public face, the tap-dancing charm that made him a media sensation (augmented here by yet another loaded jukebox of sub-Scorsese needle drops), Extremely Wicked risks minimizing his evil.

Vulture – Emily Yoshida

If the narrative film only exists to give us the unsettling sliminess of Efron as Bundy, it won’t be a total waste. But it’s not much of a movie, either.

The Guardian – Benjamin Lee – 3/5

The most shocking thing about the film is Efron’s remarkably accomplished, fiercely committed performance. As Bundy, he ruthlessly weaponises the boyish charm that’s propelled much of his career, slyly convincing us of the spell he cast, not only on Liz but the many other women who were fighting his corner, sure of his innocence.