As the IMDb says, this is a true story, but gruesome does not begin to describe it. John Wayne Gacy - the killer clown - was responsible for the deaths of over thirty young men and boys, most of whom were buried under his house at 8213 West Summerdale Avenue, which like not a few other houses of horror, was later demolished. "To Catch A Killer" was released while Gacy was still under sentence of death; he was executed by lethal injection on May 10, 1994. The film does not cover his trial but focuses on the investigation into the disappearance of his last victim, Rob Piest, who herein is called Chris Gant, presumably to protect the family.The name of the detective who brought Gacy to book is not so disguised, but there is one criticism that can be made of the film in that it panders to the usual film-flam of psychics. Herein, Detective Kozenczak consults a psychic, who gives him in retrospect startlingly accurate information about both the crimes of Gacy and his own personal health. In reality, he did consult a psychic, and as might be expected she provided no meaningful information at all. Kozenczak's unwarranted faith in psychics is a little surprising because in reality he was the one who exhibited not psychic powers but the classic policeman's hunch, in this case that there was something not quite right about Gacy, who had been seen talking to the teenager shortly before he disappeared, never to be seen alive again.The role of Gacy was alloted to Brian Dennehy, who is no stranger to sinister roles, and here he plays the Jekyll & Hyde Gacy to a tee. We see Kozenczak and his team applying psychological pressure to Gacy that in the end leads to him cracking up partly under the strain and perhaps because what little conscience the man had, finally caught up with him.This is not a film for thrill seekers but a semi-documentary that apart from the psychic non-incident adheres closely to the facts of the case. This and its length meant it was never likely to win any awards, but this was a film that was clearly made as an historical document rather than for either plaudits or profit.

I'm sure Brian Dennehy must have hated doing this role portraying sadistic, cruel serial killer, John Wayne Gacy. In this film version of the events that led to his capture and the revelations of the thirty plus lives that he tortured and murdered and kept as souvenirs to remember. Dennehy gives a performance that is both riveting and frightening and yet we can't wait to see what he does next. Especially when he's trapped by the law and being followed everywhere, still trapped in the closet, he refuses to describe himself as homosexual. Gacy was truly a hated individual who nobody missed now or ever. Dennehy deserves an Emmy for his portrayal because he tries to bring a heart to a heartless villain of a character. In reality, Gacy was the bogeyman that we children feared. Margot Kidder is memorable as the psychic who sees the horror at the home. THe mini-series is worth watching to see a great American actor like Dennehy turn this role into a winner.

IT is a fantastic movie. and based in fact...and incredibly Creepy to think it is on a true story. Seriously...Brian denehey as John Gacy is brilliant. Seriously worthy of a Oscar....considering Charlize Theron played Aileen in monster and won an Oscar for her portrayal of that serial killer. (i know it seems Apples and oranges...but i think you know what i mean.)I've watched both..and Brian deftly deserved some accreditation for it...shame it wasn't released now days wit bigger budget etc.. Excellent.

I had never heard of John Wayne Gacy or his crimes before I saw this 1992 mini-series on TV, as I was only 6 at the time Gacy was caught. When I found out about this psychopathic contractor and his mass-murder spree, I read a novel written about it by one of the men who had prosecuted John Wayne Gacy. Most of the events in the novel were quite close to those in the movie, but many of the characters are different than the real ones. Kozenczak & Gacy are the only ones whose names have not been changed; all the rest appear to have been altered in some way.Brian Dennehy is quite convincing as the burly, psychopathic building contractor who was responsible for 33 deaths over a 6-year period. Until this film I had never seen Dennehy play a bad guy; the closest he had come to it was his role as Raymond Horgan in 'Presumed Innocent', when he turns on his subordinate who is falsely accused of murder. It took me a few viewings to accept Dennehy's portrayal of Gacy, considering I had never heard of Gacy & his crimes before then and my own sense of 'type-casting'. Having read of the details behind this man's mission of misery, I found Dennehy's portrayal to be almost bang-on - almost as good as Kenneth Welsh's portrayal of narcissistic politician-turned-murderer in 'Love & Hate: The Story of Colin & Jo-Ann Thatcher'. Michael Riley is almost equally effective in his role as Joesph Kozenczak, the steadfast Chief of Detectives determined to stop John Gacy's demented mission of murder.Most of the details surrounding Gacy's crimes were left out; this doesn't detract from the film, though. They weren't necessarily essential to the story as it's told here, but I eventually learned about them through reading. Most of them were strangled and then buried in various locations on the property, starting in the crawlspace. A total of 29 bodies were found on the property; 4 more turned up in the Des Plaines River, including Chris Gant - the boy who disappears at the start of the movie, and the last victim of John Gacy.This is well worth seeing for anyone who is interested in true-crime stories.