Customer Reviews

Rampage: Killing Without Reason

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The description pretty much sums this up. Ten part series with many mass murderers discussed that have never been mentioned before in DVD format including a fairly good account of "Heaven's Gate" suicide cult. Also of interest is a look at Joseph Wesbecker's shooting spree at the Standard Gravure plant in Kentucky. What hurts this otherwise interesting series is a terrible narrator who lapses into dialectic quotes from the killers. His snide and cynical attempts of ironic humor undermine the proceedings tremendously. If not for this, the two disc set would rate at least four stars. Still, if your bag is crime documentaries this is pretty much essential and a great deal for the price.

Columbine.....and "Going Postal" seemed to be the theme of this two part review of mass/spree shootings in this interesting, but oddly narrated documentary.

The very first, and most famous mass or "Spree Killer," Charles Whitman, whose 1966 Cathedral Tower shooting at the University of Texas of students, faculty, and innocent bystanders, was covered quite well historically. His posible motivations, the failures in his life, and his relationship with his parents and his wife are covered quite well.

The 1970's seemed to be vacant of this kind of spontaneous and spur of the moment display of anger, frustration, and ultimately self destructive violence. The 1970's seemed to be the decade of the "Serial Murderers." I believe the motives between the two crimes could have been explored a bit more; as most pychologists have expressed opinions that whereas Serial Killers are fixated on either a deep core belief in a "cause", or driven by their sexual fantasies, "Spree Killers" are thought to be time bombs, just waiting to explode in anger, frustration, and eventually suicide to end their hopeless and meaningless lives.

The 1980's seemed to revolve around the work place with the first "going postal" shooting by Patrick Sherril in Edmond Oklahoma occuring in 1986. This one to me was the beginning of most frightening aspect of spree killers, as you immediately knew this kind of thing could happen to you, a co-worker or completely innocent Post Office visitor and for no reason at all be shot dead.

Luby's Restaurant in Kileen would cap off this type of personal struggle with the perpetrator killing for personal failures in his life in 1991.

Then.......the DVD leads into the School Yard student vs student spree killers.......and this is where it got real odd. When the narrator began to imitate the supposed words and thoughts of these killer kids, it was just plain creepy. One wonders whether he had had thoughts of killing bullies in High School. It just creeped me out, and I thought was totally unnessessary in the presentation.

School killings, to me, are the most frightening comment on our culture and society as it is today. 12 year old kids bringing guns to school to shoot their teachers, fellow classmates, or ex girlfriends is a statement on how violence in this country has become the answer to young people's fears, angst, and frustrations at being held out as "social outcasts"

The song, "I don't like Mondays" became a famous anthem of this phenomenon which is still at the boiling point in our world today.
Availability to hand guns, automatic weapons, and bomb making instructions on the Internet coupled with Sony Game Players full of "point of view" killing games has made this kind of expression of anger all too often an occurence in our society. I would have enjoyed a deeper discussion of these issues, although they were covered briefly by the "experts" who commented on the individual events.

Our kids are more angry, more frustrated nowadays, and more willing to express those feelings in violence to their peers. I, personally, am not a parent. But if I was, I would be afraid to send my daughter or son out there, not knowing if they were going to come home for dinner. I sympathize with today's parents. It is a different world than the "Leave it to Beaver" era I grew up in........and that is totally scary. ********* John E., California

The moment I saw this I knew it was something for me. I've always been fascinated by the thought of someone just opening fire on a bunch of innocent strangers. Call me sick. Call me curious. Just don't call me for dinner cause I'm on a diet. Anyways I ordered this direct from amazon for next to nothing and after patiently waiting a month for them to track it down they emailed me and said they gave up on looking. If I wouldve had a mailbag and a chopper I wouldve soothed myself in the most unsavory manner upon the punks at amazon. Just kidding love you guys. So I took the more sane route and bought a used copy on the marketplace for a few more bucks. It was well worth it. This DVD is full of info on all kinds of rampage killers throughout the years. If has just about any one of them you can think of. Even 9/11 has a chapter. If you can track down a copy of this you won't be sorry.