Morbid Curiosity Double Feature: Cropsey and H.H. Holmes America's First Serial Killer

Horror movies are good fun entertainment, but what to say of films about real life horror? I find documentaries about murderers to be more intellectually gripping and less anxiety provoking - at least until the magnitude of it sinks in. There are two sides to the coin. The horror flick might suck you into the story, but in the end you can feel good knowing it's just a movie. The documentary about serial killers allows you to watch with objectivity but leaves you questioning humanity.
If you are in the mood to question humanity, please enjoy these two documentaries Cropsey and H.H. Holmes America's First Serial Killer.

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Cropsey, a 2009 documentary by Barbara Brancaccio and Joshua Zeman, follows the story of Staten Island's underbelly of misplaced patients from the closed Willowbrook State School for the mentally ill and handicapped. Officially closed in 1987, the area surrounding the institution was a breeding ground for urban legend. The word "Cropsey" was coined by youths of Staten Island Boy Scout camps, defined as an insane man who lives in the woods near the asylum and murders children. For decades the stories were pass down, but it became very real in 1987 when a 12 year old girl with Downs Syndrome, Jennifer Schweiger, was abducted and murdered, her body found near Willowbrook. Chilling footage from Geraldo Revera's expose on Willowbrook, and aching testimonials of a community torn by disillusionment and terror make for a gripping film.
 

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 H.H. Holmes America's First Serial Killer is... well it pretty much explains it in the title. Superb conman, H.H. Holmes with his "murder castle" in Chicago, managed to make countless people disappear for roughly 20 years before he was caught in 1894. It's the stuff every horror movie is made of, from Secret of the Blue Room to Hostel. John Borowski made a documentary about Holmes in 2004. The idea of him being the "first" serial killer is intriguing. It's like saying Holmes invented mass murder, along with the inception of the steam engine. But along with the steam engine also came slightly improved police investigations. Holmes was one of the first serial killers who was actually found out, and studied, defining the concept of a serial killer. Watch this documentary for the bizarre story. It is positively edifying [straightens monocle].
If you want to watch in chronological order (by topic and movie release date) watch H.H. Holmes first. If you want to get the bad news first and then the good news, watch Cropsey first. Even though Holmes seemingly set the standard for serial murder, H.H. Holmes will be refreshing in it's lack of grisly news footage. Enjoy!