Product Details

• Actors: James Ellroy, Elizabeth Short
• Directors: Reinhard Jud
• Writers: Wolfgang Lehner, Reinhard Jud
• Producers: Markus Fischer
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Language: English, German
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: First Run Features
• VHS Release Date: October 12, 1999
• Run Time: 91 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6305197814
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #122,414 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When popular crime writer James Ellroy was a youngster, an unknown assailant brutally murdered his mother and left the boy with a lifelong obsession for gory crime. In this documentary, Ellroy takes the viewer on a tour of famous Los Angeles crime scenes and the more personal locations where Ellroy's life unfolded.

After his mothers' death, Ellroy went to live with his father. During his teen years he earned money as a golf caddy by day and had fun breaking into his wealthy neighbors' homes by night. Starting at this time, and because his mother's murderer was never caught, Ellroy becomes fascinated with the history of crime in L.A. Eventually, his obsession leads him to discover his talent for fiction and rescues him from a life of poverty and intoxication. From Sunset Boulevard shoot-'em-ups to the infamous murder of the Black Dahlia, blood has poured on the streets of L.A., and Ellroy not only enjoys discussing it, he also loves visiting the locations. Thankfully, his obsession leads to the pen and not the sword, so Ellroy fans can relish reading the books instead of the newspapers. --Margaret Griffis

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A must-see for hardcore Ellroy fans., February 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: James Ellroy: Demon Dog of American Crime Fiction [VHS] (VHS Tape)

"James Ellroy, Demon Dog of American Crime Fiction" is indispensable for Ellroy fans; it may be imminently dispensable for the unitiated. Ellroy is captured in all of his extroverted, excessive glory - fresh from completion of his "L.A. Quartet," and prior to the release of "American Tabloid," the first volume of his "Underworld U.S.A." trilogy. The documentary prefigures the self-exposure and raw candor of Ellroy's best-selling memoir, "My Dark Places" and in fact includes a visit by Ellroy to the scene of his mother's still-unsolved murder - the crime upon which the memoir is centered. Ellroy also escorts the viewer through a walking tour of other crime scenes that figure prominently in his fiction, including the dump site of the body of Elizabeth Short ("The Black Dahlia") and the shooting of an associate of Mickey Cohen - an L.A. mobster who figures repeatedly in Ellroy's novels and short fiction. Ellroy is also glimpsed at home and during book signings. The film itself suffers from a few too many, overlong montages of L.A.P.D. cruisers and cops and Hollywood bottom feeders strolling by night. The video's sound quality - at least during the first twenty or so minutes - is slightly muddy. Overall, however, this is a gripping, satisfying film for those who want to know more about Ellroy and the sources of his very dark fiction. Non-fans should read a few Ellroy books before confronting the Demon Dog in all of his unexpurgated, full-frontal, self-revealing glory.

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Good Ellroy Documentary -- Why No DVD Yet???, February 16, 2010

By 

Lemmy Caution (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: James Ellroy: Demon Dog of American Crime Fiction [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This documentary about James Ellroy (the Demon Dog of American Crime Fiction, author of L.A. Confidential, The Black Dahlia, American Tabloid, & other great books) is well worth watching just to listen to Ellroy's comments about his own life & career, his views on crime fiction in general, why the private eye genre is romantic bulls--t, famous (or is it infamous?) crimes of L.A., to hear him howling at booksignings, public readings of White Jazz, and to see him rolling around on the carpet of his study with his dog, Barko.

They could have just pointed the camera at James Ellroy talking for 90 minutes and it would hold your attention, no problem. Why do you think so many people flock to his public appearances? Just to get a book signed? No way. They don't call him the "Demon Dog" for nothing.

Ellroy also visits locations of real-life crimes -- including the place where the body of Elizabeth Short (aka The Black Dahlia) was found -- and El Monte, CA, where his mother was murdered. Plus you get to see some great police camera footage from the 1950s -- crime scenes, dead gangsters, Mickey Cohen arrested, and the like. Unfortunately this item is only available on VHS tape currently. When the heck is a DVD coming out? I'd love to see one, esp. if it included updated material. (Since this documentary was made, Ellroy has written the "USA Underworld" trilogy, some collections of short stories & articles, screenplays, and was introduced to a wider audience through the release of movie adaptations of L.A. Confidential and The Black Dahlia.)

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TrezKu13...you're reviewing the wrong documentary, August 28, 2006

By 

Porkchop Express - See all my reviews

This review is from: James Ellroy: Demon Dog of American Crime Fiction [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Just a quick note...TrezKu13 is actually referring not to Demong Dog, but rather to a documentary called "Feast of Death" that was far superior to this one but never released on video in any format. It was a documentary that only aired on Showtime a few years back and is well worth tracking down. Demon Dog is a good doc as well...if you're an Ellroy fan, either one will give you a rare glimpse into the personality of this reclusive genius.