When Michael Moore's name is attached to a documentary, such as "Roger & Me" or "Bowling for Columbine," we expect the film to be just as much about him as whatever subject he's exploring.
But when "Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer" turns out to be just as much about filmmaker Nick Broomfield as Aileen Wuornos, "it's a major disappoint."
"Aileen" is Broomfield's follow-up to his 1992 documentary, "Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer." And Broomfield proves himself to be a considerably less interesting personality than Moore. But, aside from that, the filmmaker misses too many opportunities by focusing too much on himself.
The film records some of the final interviews Wuornos gave before her 2002 execution, as a Florida highway prostitute convicted of killing seven men. But instead of concentrating on that, Broomfield follows his own, less-insightful agenda, which includes accusations against Florida law-enforcement officials he says pursued movie-development deals instead of running a thorough investigation into Wuornos' crimes.
And even when he does make a good point, such as his "dressing-down" of Wuornos' first attorney, Broomfield puts himself front-and-center to take credit for it.
After nearly an hour's worth of chest-thumping and self-congratulatory moments, Broomfield finally gets to the real meat of all this — Wuornos' resignation to her fate. She simply drops her appeals, and, hoping to speed up her execution date, retracts some of her "self-defense" claims.
It's in this final section that the film really gets your attention. Until then, it's simply Broomfield continuing to harp on the same things he did in his earlier documentary.
That said, when Wuornos is on-screen, the film is riveting. (It's also a nice reminder of just how eerily accurate Academy Award-winner Charlize Theron's impersonation of her was in the film "Monster.")
"Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer" is rated R for frequent use of strong sexual profanity, frank sexual talk (including use of sexual slang terms) and references to drug use. Running time: 89 minutes.
E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com