America's Serial Killers - Portraits in Evil (DVD, 2009)

we love mysteries and studying about serial killers.we love things like this these are great little biographies that we enjoy as a family to watch

it covered a good number of killers, was easy to understand.
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these are some seriously warped minds

This is a very thorough ten-part documentary at a reasonable price. My reason for taking off a point (rating it good rather than excellent) is that it is a bit TOO thorough. The title is AMERICA'S SERIAL KILLERS. When it sticks to the topic, it's riveting. But it goes off-topic often, in great detail. An entire episode is devoted to Jack The Ripper (a BRITISH serial killer); other episodes delve into vampires, werewolves, and movies about fictional serial killers. These tangents are interesting if you are into that sort of thing; viewers who are interested ONLY in American serial killers might not be enthusiastic. A very long intro is repeated at the beginning of each episode, which gets repetitious if you're watching multiple episodes in one sitting. The narrator also uses a creepy, high-pitched voice when quoting the serial killers. Otherwise, the documentary is serious, dignified, and does not exaggerate or glorify the criminals. Even if you think you know the stories of America's most notorious serial killers, this DVD may offer new information. For example, I was surprised to learn that Ed Gein only killed THREE people; he was into performing atrocities on dead bodies, so most of his victims were dug up from the local cemetery. Definitely worth watching.