I was never aware these two sick animals' crimes, so I went in to this without knowing what this movie was about. A social work student is asked to act as an 'Appropriate Adult' for a guy in a police station who is dressed in a normal fashion, no chains or even handcuffs. The fellow speaks in a matter of fact manner about having problems with his daughter, who threatened to give LSD to her younger siblings, and the father says he loses control and chokes her. The fellow then is left alone with the 'AA' and makes some chilling remarks to her. The police are shown digging up the guy's backyard with him again, not in handcuffs, speaking knowledgeably about using some tools.Basically, that's the pattern of the whole movie, and while it's kind of creepy, it gets kind of monotonous after a while, and I found myself wishing that the film would just end. Certainly, the two leads give good performances, but the director doesn't help them much in his choice of presenting the story in the manner of a play, rather than as a work of cinema.

I find I'm the skunk at the garden party with this flick. I found this highly acclaimed docudrama repellent, but not for the reasons one might suspect. It was repellent - as well as incomprehensible - to watch Leach's developing interest and fascination with Fred West. Anyone watching this movie should first do some Googling to find out the details of what Fred and Rosemary West perpetrated. If anyone deserves to be called human monsters, it is this pair. In the light of this knowledge, the script's clear intention - to me anyway - to actually make West into a figure of sympathy is disgusting. Knowing the nature of his deeds, his weeping and the crying about the "baby" (complete with colorful regional pronunciation of the word) are repulsive. It was also interesting to see the British treatment of prisoners in interrogation: allowed to wear their own clothes (no prison uniforms) and pretty much conducted like afternoon tea. As at least one other critic has observed, it is incomprehensible how any morally sentient human being could develop any sympathy with this fiend, as Leach evidently did. As the relationship between Leach and West is at the core of this narrative, and her motivation remains unexplained if not inexplicable, the whole movie does not wash.It was nice of the producers to include the photos of the actual victims in the closing credits. During the movie itself there is minimal emotion at their loss; the burial of their remains is portrayed with as much moral weight as the burial of a pickle jar.

APPROPRIATE ADULT may not be available on USA Format DVD as yet, but for those interested in seeing this remarkable achievement in filmmaking, it is viewable now on Sundance Channel. Watch for it. APPROPRIATE ADULT is one of the few films that relates the true story of a serial killer without resorting to forcing the audience to watch reenactments of the murders. Instead the writer, director and actors bring this savage bit of history to the screen solely through a serious of interview conducted with the killer in the presence of the British police and an 'Appropriate Adult' - one who has been trained to help the accused by detecting if the accused has learning difficulties or other encumbrances that might make the interviews invalid. First a bit of fact: 'Frederick Walter Stephen West (29 September 1941[1] - 1 January 1995), was a British serial killer. Between 1967 and 1987, he alone, and later, he and his wife Rosemary, tortured, raped and murdered at least 11 young women and girls, many at the couple's homes. The majority of the murders occurred between May 1973 and September 1979 at their home in Gloucester. Rosemary West also murdered Fred's stepdaughter (his first wife's biological daughter) Charmaine, while he was serving a prison sentence for theft. During this time they resided at 25 Cromwell Street, Gloucester. The house was demolished in 1996 and was converted into a landscaped footpath connecting Cromwell Street to St. Michaels Square.' It is now believed that West was responsible for 20 other similarly executed murders. The film focuses on the Appropriate Adult Janet Leach (Emily Watson in an Oscar worthy performance), a trainee social worker who is asked by Gloucester police to sit in on the interrogations of Frederick West (played with extraordinary skill by Dominic West). West is a sociopath whose past of preying on women comes from the animal magnetism he owns, a factor which is strong enough to keep Janet on the case a Fred's assigned 'helper'. Janet lives with Mike (Anthony Flanagan) who is a bipolar victim and with whom Janet has three children. The tightrope of psychological stability for Janet is threatened by her hearing all the grisly details of the murders as well as facing a home where Mike stop his lithium and must be psychiatrically hospitalized. Janet is repulsed by what Fred unwinds and decides she cannot manage to remain the appropriate adult, but Fred sees her as his only friend and promises here that if she stays on the case he will tell her the truth about everything. The interviews are held in the presence of Detective Constable Hazel Savage (Sylvestra Le Tousel), Detective Superintendent John Bennett (Robert Glenister), West's assigned solicitor Howard Ogden (Gerald Horan) and Janet. There are moments when Fred tells Janet details he hasn't shared with the police, but because of her assigned role as appropriate adult she must hold these conversations with the murderer in confidence. There are times when the interrogation group accompanies Fred to his home to find the bodies buried in his garden and cellar, but these breaks are few and outside of the visits to Janet's home and to the hospital while Mike is institutionalized the film is claustrophobically viewed in the dank interrogation room. Once the interrogation is complete and hearings begin, Fred pleads with Janet to visit him in prison to share all the details of his life. The manner in which their relationship comes to an end is shocking but allows Janet to return to her home life with Mike and her three children: the paparazzi finally leave Janet alone.The story was written for the screen by Neil McKay and directed by Julian Jarrod. The film is approximately 2 1/2 hours in length, but the story is so fascinating and the acting is so incredibly fine on the part of everyone in this cast that the film itself feels short. Dominic West and Emily Watson are absolutely extraordinary in this film. With the quality of their performances it is doubtful the movie would have the enormous impact that it has. Grady Harp

I first heard bits and pieces about the vicious and unbelievable murders of serial killers Fred and Rose West from jokes made on Mock the Week, so naturally I was curious to see one of the first dramatisations of the story. Basically, set in 1994, Gloucestershire, Janet Leach (BAFTA winning, and Golden Globe nominated Emily Watson) is the voluntary worker and social worker brought in to sit in the interviews to help with the investigation into a series of murders. The man in question requiring her presence is Frederick Walter Stephen West (300's BAFTA winning Dominic West, no relation), who is suspected of killing his daughter and an ex-wife, and soon enough he confesses in detail to a killing or two. As time goes by and Fred agrees to show the authorities where he put the remains of his victims, he also hints to Janet of more people he has killed, but because of her obligation of confidentiality to him she cannot tell the police. Meanwhile, she also seems to be forming an overly complicated personal relationship with Fred as he gains her trust to help him get back his family and house, but to do this he must promise to reveal all the people he has killed. Also being questioned about the various murders, which may total up to twenty or more victims, is Fred's wife Rosemary Pauline West, née Letts (BAFTA winning Monica Dolan), who is seen on screen mostly swearing a lot and shouting that she is innocent and to let her husband go. After confessing the people he has allegedly killed Fred is sentenced to a court hearing which obviously turns into a life sentence, and Janet is forced but also obliged to continue the relationship with Fred in prison. The police continue their examination of the sights Fred pointed out, the bodies that have been found, and whether Rose is indeed guilty of killing as well, and Janet has a final telephone conversation with Fred. This is before the next day when he was found dead from hanging himself, Janet's husband realises that she may have had some bond towards the serial killer, like a friend. In the end, after Janet is slowly moving on with her own life with her husband and children Rose is the one who left to stand trial and she is indeed found guilty for many of the countless murders and sentenced to life imprisonment, advised never to be released. Also starring Hustle's Robert Glenister as Detective Superintendent John Bennett, Sylvestra Le Touzel as Detective Constable Hazel Savage, Anthony Flanagan as Mike, Samuel Roukin as Detective Constable Darren Law, Gerard Horan as Howard Ogden, Seline Hizli as Mae West, James McArdle as Stephen West, Rupert Simonian as Josh, Sophie Downham as Jade, Jasper Jacob as Brian Leveson QC, Robert Whitelock as DC Carl Kempinsky and Paula Williamson as Kirsty Stephens, and featuring the voices of real reports from Sir Trevor McDonald, John Suchet and Radio 1's Steve Scott. What is extraordinary about this dramatisation of the story is that it does not need to sensationalise any of the reported or discovered events, i.e. we never see any murders committed or see any bodies brought up from under the garden soil or the patio, this by the way is all I have heard about the murders, mostly from jokes made. Watson is fantastic as the social worker protagonist who sits and walks through the movements of the serial killer and finds some kind of odd but plausible need to be near him, and Dolan is really good as the swearing and equally dangerous Rose, but of course the show is stolen by the superb performance from West putting on an authentic Gloucestershire accent and is completely believable and powerful as the killer who acts calm but also nervous, but is not afraid when asked to describe in vivid detail about his murders and where the bodies can be found. I have had bad experiences with television dramas in the past, only Goodnight Mister Tom stands out as one of the truly brilliant ones, but I was pleasantly surprised by this utterly compelling and astoundingly played and scripted story of shocking murder and inhuman activity, played very calmly but fantastically engaging, superb crime drama. It won the BAFTA for Breakthrough Talent, and it was nominated for Best Director: Fiction for Julian Jarrold, Best Mini-Series, Best Production Design and Best Writer. Very good!