Profiled in this brand new three-disc documentary set are:

…Henry Lee Lucas, “The Confession Killer,” was born to a prostitute and by all accounts, endured a horrific childhood. Along with Ottis Toole, Lucas embarked on a multi-state killing spree and was believed to have murdered more than 100 people. The movie, Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer  (20th anniversary edition coming to DVD on 9/27) is loosely based on Lucas.

…Michael Bruce Ross, “The Roadside Killer,” was an articulate Cornell University graduate who ran a successful insurance agency. He murdered at least six young women, placing them on their stomachs to strangle them from behind. He was executed in May 2005 by the state of Connecticut.

…Theodore Robert Bundy, “The Lady Killer,” was an attractive man who killed at least 35 young women and escaped twice from custody. Author Ann Rule wrote a best-selling book about Bundy, The Stranger Beside Me, whom she met when they volunteered together at a suicide prevention hotline. Bundy was executed via the electric chair in January 1989.

…William Heirens, “The Lipstick Killer,” got his name after he left a note for police, written in lipstick. Heirens has served the longest life sentence of any killer in America for the barbaric murders of two young women and the strangulation and dismemberment of a young girl. He is currently incarcerated in Illinois.

…Kenneth Bianchi, “The Hillside Strangler,” a wannabe policeman and his cousin, Angelo Buono embarked upon a rampage of terror across southern California. The pair used fake badges to ‘arrest’ their female victims, who were tortured, killed and dumped along the hillside. Buono died in jail 2002. Bianchi is serving time in Washington State.

…Kenneth Allen McDuff, “The Broomstick Killer,” killed three teenagers and received a death sentence. However, a corruption scandal involving his attorney and the parole board chairman, resulted in an early release for McDuff. He began to kill again, possibly as many as 18 more victims.

…Harvey Louis Carignan, “Harv the Hammer,” was a man of enormous physical strength who placed bogus help wanted ads for women, then assaulted and murdered them with a claw hammer.

…Ronald DeFeo Jr., “The Amityville Horror,” was a young man who murdered all six members of his family execution-style. DeFeo received 25 years-to life in prison on all six counts. The popular book and movie, The Amityville Horror, was based on the supernatural events allegedly experienced by subsequent homeowners where the killings occurred.

….Catherine May Wood and Gwendolyn Graham are known as “The Lethal Lovers.” Their bizarre quest for sexual gratification led to the smothering deaths of helpless residents at the nursing home where they worked.

…Arthur Shawcross, “The Monster of the Rivers,” had a history of sexually violent crimes, but was often released for being a model prisoner. He is now serving 250 years in jail for the murders of prostitutes, leaving many of his victims in watery graves.

…Douglas Clark, “The Sunset Slayer,” cruised Sunset Boulevard seeking out prostitutes to kill and dismember. He was sentenced to death by electrocution. His female accomplice, Carol Bundy, died in prison in 2003.

…James A. Paul, “The Executioner,” killed using weapons stolen from the farm where he worked. He committed at least three execution-style slayings over a period of a few days and is serving three consecutive life sentences.

I’m a true crime fan, and I often find real-life horrors a lot scarier than anything William Peter Blatty or M. Night Shyamalan can dream up. I enjoyed (if that’s the right word…) The Serial Killers up to a point, but the whole presentation is very cut-and-dried. It’s almost 100% static shots on talking heads (from the criminals to the criminalists), with no visual style whatsoever. And not to be ghoulish, but even A&E’s 10:00 a.m. showing of American Justice unflinchingly shows the aftermath of the most heinous crimes and murders. I think visuals would definitely added to the impact for this DVD — otherwise, you might as well be reading a book on the subject.

The mix of notorious serial killers and ones that are lesser known was a good move on the part of the DVDs producers; it definitely gives true crime buffs a reason to buy the modestly-priced offering, which will be available on August 30.

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Review by Staci Layne Wilson