10 Savoy (1971)

Anyone else jumped on this yet? 😁

No worries, I haven't really found the time myself, but I'm definitely sitting down to watch it tonight!

To be honest, I don't know a ton about this movie other than it's got great reviews. Since it's based on a true story, reading up on it actually reminded me of this killer miniseries I watched a few years back... Savoy starring Tim Roth.

It’s basically a biopic about an American serial killer active during the 40s and 50s. (He passed away in 1953.)

The director is Richard Fleischer. Man, I can't even remember everything he's done, though I do vividly remember Red Sonja with Schwarzenegger when he was just a kid. 😬 Oh, and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea with Kirk Douglas. I've actually got a few more of his flicks on my IMDb watchlist, including Soylent Green... among others. He even won an Oscar for a documentary back in 1947.

Basically, he was the kind of director producers could always count on back in the day, having had a pretty solid career with a handful of big commercial hits under his belt.

I'll post my thoughts on the movie later once I've actually seen it!

Alright, I’ve finished it. Fair warning: there are major spoilers ahead, so if you haven't seen it yet, stop reading now.

Bottom line? It's a bizarre movie. I wouldn't say I was blown away, but I wasn't exactly disappointed either. To be honest, most of it felt pretty predictable—except for that one scene where he killed the baby. The actor playing Christie is actually quite good, but the guy playing Timothy was incredibly weak. And the trial itself? Totally nonsensical. I don't get why Timothy was such a complete idiot; he couldn't even articulate himself or put together a basic defense. It's like he didn't even try, at least based on how they filmed it. Not to mention the absolute mess of statements he gave to the police. I feel for the guy, but clearly, he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed. The whole courtroom sequence felt poorly written—they kept dragging in irrelevant details and making these ridiculous claims about holes in testimony... Honestly, I've never seen a more absurdly portrayed trial. 🤷

Since I already knew the plot, the predictability didn't really bother me. Honestly, it probably wouldn't have bothered people who already know the backstory of this serial killer either. I mean, movies about these types always feel different... there's just something about how we're constantly shocked by how monstrous they can be, and these films try to shine a light on what actually went down.

The story here is especially wild because it centers on a court case that wasn't truly settled until after the sentence was carried out. It’s a massive legal blunder, which makes the whole movie feel even more surreal...

And hey, there's no reason not to believe this is exactly how it happened, since there aren't many sources out there contradicting this version of events.

As for the acting, I thought the roles were solid (Richard Attenborough and John Hurt)... the story is put together well enough to keep you hooked. It’s not exactly groundbreaking, but it’s good enough to make sure you catch all the motives and walk away with that final impression—which, in my opinion, you absolutely have to connect back to the backstory.

Oh, and one more thing! I highly recommend the mini-series. It's only three episodes... go watch it and see the difference for yourself.

I finally sat down to watch the movie today, though I am still processing my thoughts on it. 🤷

The plot held my interest, even if the characters felt a bit eccentric. Given all the deception at play, I expected Christie to be sharper and more successful at covering up the murders. In contrast, Timothy seemed somewhat dim-witted. 😁

It is difficult to find the right words to describe my experience. 😳

Perhaps this kind of story would have resonated more deeply with me years ago. However, having seen so many serial killer thrillers, even with the fact that this is based on a true story, I found myself feeling rather indifferent. 🤷

Please excuse the brevity of this post; I am truly struggling to expand on my reaction. 😳

I might find more inspiration to write if others decide to join the conversation...

Man, I really stepped in it this time! I finally managed to unwind from all this pandemic stress and decided to sit down with the movie you guys picked out. Seriously? Why would anyone choose a topic like this? 🤣
Look, I’m an idiot—I knew what I was getting into from the jump, but I have a massive weakness for those old classics. It starts off classic with that iconic score, and then the camera just slides right from the credits into the actual setting. How am I supposed to turn it off after that? Plus, you've got a young John Hurt and Attenborough—the guy who played Gandhi—acting as the ultimate sick men. As far as the filmmaking goes, it's nothing special, but the story itself is enough of a hook to keep you watching in disbelief at how everything actually went down. Honestly, we could talk about the real-life story way longer than we could talk about the film itself.🍿

Honestly, I’m not even sure how many serial killer movies were actually out back then—I mean, Ted Bundy and the rest of those guys came along much later, and Psycho was only partially inspired by Gein's case anyway—but looking back from where we are now, this movie really hit the mark for its era. It's a total success!

I gotta say, my take on it is pretty straightforward. The whole thing just highlights how bizarre the situation was: Timothy was just so incredibly naive and clueless, while Christie had all the classic hallmarks of a psychopath. It’s honestly no shocker that he managed to pull the wool over his eyes like that.

The biggest mystery to me, though? How sloppy the court was... they just brushed off any chance that Christie was involved way too easily.

It’s wild to think they never would’ve caught on if he hadn't turned into such a scumbag and been forced to bail from his apartment.🍿

Grace Sanders24 said:It’s honestly wild to think about... they probably never would've even caught him if he hadn't been such an absolute jerk and been forced to move out of his apartment... turns out being a decent human being might actually be a survival tactic! ... 🍿

So, that one movie basically just sticks to Timothy's case—you know, starting with that first murder just to give you a real sense of who this guy actually was... but this miniseries I mentioned? It goes way deeper than that! It covers so much more ground. So, if you're actually looking to dive into the full story, you should definitely check it out... 🙂

Grace Sanders24 said:It is truly fascinating to consider that they would never have uncovered his true nature if he hadn't behaved so recklessly and been forced to vacate his apartment. 🍿

At first glance, Christie appears to be a man with a perfectly composed life, someone who merely indulges in a deviant hobby on occasion while remaining clever enough to evade detection. By the end, however, we witness his total unraveling; he abandons his career, isolates himself from everyone, grows reckless, and ultimately descends into complete ruin until he is left homeless.

Perhaps the act of killing a child had such a profound impact on him. 🤔 Is there going to be a trial? 🤔 Did his condition simply manifest in that particular way? 🤷

Alright, anything the movie leaves out is super easy to dig up online. With psychopaths, they just don't have a conscience, so guilt isn't really a factor here...

It’s basically your classic tragic backstory—rough childhood, nobody liked him in high school, and he drifted into petty crime as he grew up. But the real kicker was his impotence. Even though he was married, he’d go out and visit prostitutes from time to time.

He actually moved out of that house after the landlord showed up to find a different couple living there! They had been paying Christie because they thought he was the owner... apparently, he was playing landlord to them.

Right after Christie cleared out, those folks found some sketchy stuff, which eventually led them to discover the bodies of his victims walled up inside. That’s when the whole thing blew up, he got arrested, and his true nature was finally exposed.

The film left quite a bit out...

Steven Newman50 said:The movie basically just focuses on Timothy's case—starting with that first murder just to set the stage for his character—but this miniseries I mentioned covers way more ground. So if you want the full story, definitely 🙂

Almost there. I'll probably knock it out tomorrow, I just need to track down the series first! 👍

I wasn't familiar with the actual story, and man, this was just brutal to watch. It’s hard to wrap my head around the fact that people with that kind of sociopathy actually exist in the world...
Since the dialogue at the start is based as closely as possible on real transcripts, the plot itself felt pretty grounded and convincing. Where I really lost interest, though, was that segment where Christie manipulates John Hurt into thinking he needs to flee just to avoid prison time. You could try to chalk it up to his lack of wits, but honestly, you can't be quite that dim...
The atmosphere was spot on, though—really captured the right mood.
My one major gripe has to be the costume design. Seriously, could they not find anything better for Attenborough than using some woman's stockings to simulate a bald head...

Steven Newman50 said:The director is Richard Fleischer, and I can't even remember half the stuff he's done; all I really recall is Red Sonja with Schwarzenegger back when he was just a kid. 😬 And sure, there's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea with Kirk Douglas. I've got a few more of his films sitting on my IMDb watchlist, including Soylent Green, among others. He even won an Oscar for a documentary back in 1947.

For me, Compulsion and Narrow Margin were actually pretty good.

mistybison said:The movie held my interest, but the characters felt a bit off. With all the lying and playing parts, I really expected Christie to be smarter and actually manage to cover up all those murders.

According to Wikipedia, he had an IQ of 128. Clearly, he was intelligent enough to hide eight murders over the span of a decade. 🤷

mistybison said:Maybe killing a child did something to him? 🤔 Or the trial? 🤔 Or maybe his condition just progressed that way naturally? 🤷

Something probably just broke inside him, seeing as he ended up breaking down in tears during the trial...

Mark Cruz15 said:Something likely broke him; he ended up breaking down in tears during the trial.

I suspect it was just a release of built-up stress since he managed to evade conviction. Then again, who can truly fathom the mind of a psychopath or sociopath?

Poor Timothy and his entire family. If he’d possessed even a shred of common sense, the outcome would have been entirely different.

Those were more innocent times back then. People tended to trust one another, especially if someone presented themselves as an expert or an authority figure.

All things considered, it's a deeply bizarre situation. If this weren't based on a true story, you'd think it was impossible for someone to be as naive as Timothy. 🙂 And leaving a baby all alone... just unbelievable.

neonhound32 said:I honestly think he was just blowing off steam since he never actually got caught or convicted. But then again, you can never truly know what goes on inside the mind of a psychopath or a sociopath...

Poor Timothy and his entire family. If he’d had even a shred more common sense, the whole thing would have ended up completely differently...

Back then, times were much more innocent, and people generally gave others the benefit of the doubt, especially if someone sounded professional or carried themselves like an authority figure.

All things considered, it’s such a bizarre situation; if we didn't know this was based on true events, people would probably say there's no way someone could be quite as naive as Timothy. 🙂 And leaving a baby all alone... just unbelievable.

I find it hard to believe that people were ever truly that foolish. Human nature remains constant; it’s just our social norms that shift over time.

Mark Cruz15 said:I find it hard to believe people were ever truly that foolish. Human nature doesn't change; only our customs do.

My point wasn't that people lacked intelligence, but rather that they had a much higher level of trust in one another.
Take that scene at the start of the movie—she agrees to marry a man she’s just met before even seeing his place. I can't imagine anyone in modern America making a move like that on a whim...
And Timothy certainly had some cognitive limitations; the film mentions it several times.

Honestly, this wasn't bad at all—though I have to admit, once the movie hits the trial phase, things get a little heavy for me. I’m almost always down for a good true crime or serial killer flick, so I went into this one with pretty high expectations. I hadn't heard much about the actual case before, but after seeing so many movies on this subject, it’s getting harder and harder to find anything that truly shocks me. That being said, I guess I'm still pretty sensitive when it comes to anything involving kids... so that specific part of the film actually hit me a bit harder than I was expecting.