Matcollis This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Staci Frederick Blistering performances.

trishaade "Helter Skelter" is not billed as a horror movie, but it's been my experience that some stories and films about real people can be just as terrifying, if not more so, than a monster movie. This one is a case in point.The time was the 1960's, the era of free love, drugs, discontented youth, political unrest and protests. Kids felt like they could change the world, and many rebelled against everything their parents held dear. Thousands of young people migrated to Haight-Ashbury to join in on the fun. Gurus abounded and anyone who owned a guitar and could talk the talk had a leg up on those who didn't.Enter Charles Manson, a 32 year old who was a long term convict and had just been released from prison. He gravitated to Haight-Ashbury with his guitar and over a period of time, was able to recruit young people to join his commune which he later termed his "family". There was a catch though - you couldn't join if Charlie didn't want you. The reason? Charlie was looking for people he could easily manipulate. He'd learned to be quite the chameleon in prison, and was able to tell each one of his damaged followers exactly what they wanted and needed to hear resulting in their absolute devotion and his absolute control. A career criminal, as astounding as it sounds, was able to convince these people through manipulation, sex and drugs that he was indeed Jesus Christ and that they were his "chosen". This ultimately led to the murders of Sharon Tate and her unborn child, Abigail Folger, Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowsk, Steven Parent and Leo and Rosemary LaBianca, among others.The movie closely follows the book written by Vincent Bugliosi, the lead prosecutor during the resulting murder trial of Manson and three of the four other participants. What makes this movie so scary? It's not just the story of manipulation, mind control and murder that makes it so frightening, but coming to the understanding that these people had absolutely no remorse for what they did and would have gladly done it again if Charlie asked them to. Listening to Susan Atkins' grand jury testimony about killing Sharon Tate in graphic detail like it was no bigger of a deal than going grocery shopping is quite chilling. And finally, understanding that this is a true story, not fiction, and at any given time or place another Charlie might be lurking in the shadows.This movie would have failed miserably if it was poorly acted or hammy - it wasn't. All of the actors were quite convincing. Casting Steve Railsback as Manson was pure genius as far as I'm concerned. This is by far the best Manson movie out there. If you are into true crime, this movie should definitely be on your watch list. A perfect example of the truth being stranger than fiction.

WakenPayne Personally I Think That The Story Of Charles Manson Has Always Been Something I Can Only Describe As F#ucked Up, This Guy Controlled People To Kill People He Never Met. The Movie Is A Courtroom Drama, Whereas From What I've Seen Of The Remake Its A Point A To B Film. I Have To Say Something About Steve Railsback's Performance, He Played Manson A Little Too Well, I Could See He Was Trying His Best To Make Him Seem Realistic And He Did It Very Well.The Plot Is That Manson Is On Trial But With No Actual Murders Next To His Name And With That He Could Walk Away A Free Man.Overall I Liked This Movie, There Are More Reasons As To Why I Like This Film Then Railsback's Performance As Manson And I Actually Recommend This To Anyone Whose Interested In This

maryaha I saw this movie in 1976 when I was 16 years old and it scared me to death. The first half came on Thursday night and I did okay with that. The next day I bought the book and watched the second half of the movie. The book states "the book you are about to read will scare the hell out of you". And it did. When I went to bed that night, I had nightmares so vivid that I could see the killer's car pull up in front of my house. This terror went on for several nights more and I decided that I was too dang scared to read the book so I threw it in a dumpster. It was 15 years before I would pick that book up again and actually be able to read it. Even then though, it frightened me something terrible. I rented the movie on VHS a few times and it scared me each time, but I loved the movie. I now have it on DVD and I watch it from time to time. The movie, with the clothes and hairstyles is indeed dated but it is still an excellent movie. On a scale from one to ten, it is a ten. I have since read the book numerous times, but I always heed the warning about it scaring the hell out of you. Anyone that has not seen this movie needs to see it. For me, it is not about the control that Charlie had over his family that is so evil. It is the fact that there are people in this world evil enough to do what they did to their helpless and innocent victims. These murders changed the U.S. forever and maybe that is why people are still so interested in this murder case, and that includes me too. I read everything I can find about the case, the victims, the killers and everyone else involved. I would like to be in contact with others that are still interested in this bizarre story. My contact information is maryaha@yahoo.com.

postmanwhoalwaysringstwice "Helter Skelter" is the three hour and four minute mini-series (made for TV movie) from 1976 about the Manson murders of seven years earlier. Clearly some things have changed in broadcasting since this period, and the lengthy running time is a point of disappointment. The film is an important record and representation of a point of great cynicism and uncertainty in America, and the Manson murders certainly took yet another notch off the country's innocence, given any remained.As was the case with the television at the time, broadcasting was generally for a family audience. Even in a production such as "Helter Skelter" those touches are clear, since the story is told between an even-tempered, fact spewing narrator and a narrative that follows the step-by-step dissection of the murder investigation. Sadly, the narrator becomes intrusive very quickly and the story gets it's point across twice as fast as it thinks it does.The basic premise of "Helter Skelter" is very interesting and Steve Railsback's over the top characterization of Charles Manson remains reasonably engaging for about seventy-five percent of the film, but the highly sanitized and dumbed-down touches make for difficult and tedious viewing.