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The Zodiac Killer

Play trailer Poster for The Zodiac Killer R 1971 1h 27m Mystery & Thriller Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 3 Reviews 20% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
A serial killer in San Francisco murders without motive or apparent pattern and taunts the police with phone calls and letters.
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The Zodiac Killer

Critics Reviews

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Richard Whittaker Austin Chronicle 10/04/2016
True crime and cinema go together like highways and spree killers. But no film has a more bizarre relationship with real-life murder than 1971's The Zodiac Killer, the first film to be restored by the American Genre Film Archive. Go to Full Review
Bob Calhoun SF Weekly 09/01/2017
What's crazier than the film itself is that all this blood-soaked cinma vrit was produced with a purpose. Go to Full Review
Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews 04/09/2015
C-
Atrocious dialogue. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Jorge H @jorge02 2d Not related to the real crimes but it is a good slasher film but it's also offensive and disrespectful using a real life event for a exploration slasher film. See more Max M. @Househuntermax Feb 6 What makes this movie so interesting watching it now is that it was released while the zodiac was still active. They even showed this movie in San Francisco, trying to lure him into a screening. A great companion piece to David Fincher’s Zodiac from 2007 See more Wayne K @RT88290232 02/19/2025 An above average serial killer exploitation film with a backstory that’s more interesting than the overall plot, The Zodiac Killer was allegedly produced and marketed with the intention of luring the real Zodiac Killer into a movie theatre to watch it. The production is cheap, the editing choppy and the performances wooden and mostly unconvincing, with exception of Hal Reed, who was never going to win any awards for his acting but still manages to infuse the titular killer with some personality and even gravitas. Sadly, he’s let down by a script that doesn’t quite know what to do with him. Is the Zodiac a calculating killer who carefully chooses his victims and is happy to brag about it in print, or is he just an unhinged psychopath who ambushes and kills whoever takes his fancy? It obviously wasn’t going for high art, and we’ll never know whether or not it achieved its goal, but its still a perfectly serviceable slasher film with just enough intrigue to keep your attention throughout. See more Dallas H @RT53171010 02/19/2024 It's a cheesy, low-budget movie worth watching for its value as lowball entertainment. The opening narration tries to convince the audience this flick is implied to be a public service announcement about our safety as a serial killer is hiding around every corner. It's eye-rolling hilarity. See more Steve D @RT35616104 03/23/2023 Surprisingly dull given the subject. See more delysid d @RT67044741 01/16/2018 most boring movie of 1971 See more Read all reviews
The Zodiac Killer

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Movie Info

Synopsis A serial killer in San Francisco murders without motive or apparent pattern and taunts the police with phone calls and letters.
Director
Tom Hanson
Producer
Tom Hanson
Screenwriter
Ray Cantrell, Manny Cardoza
Distributor
Audubon Films
Production Co
Academy Productions
Rating
R
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 7, 1971, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 7, 2018
Runtime
1h 27m
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