*Watch "Making a Monster" on Amazon Prime Video here*
*Get She Must Have Known: The Trial of Rosemary West by Brian Masters on Amazon here*
*Get Rose West: The Making of a Monster by Jane Carter Woodrow on Amazon here*
*Get Love as Always, Mum xxx: The True and Terrible Story of Surviving a Childhood with Fred and Rose West by Mae West with Neil McKay on Amazon here*
*Get The Lost Girl: How I Triumphed Over Life at the Mercy of Fred and Rose West by Caroline Roberts on Amazon here*
Concentrating more on United Kingdom serial killer Rose West instead of her husband Fred West, this documentary episode is full of information and salaciousness.
The series covers infamous killers from a more cerebral angle, looking into their upbringing since serial killers aren't just born. Rosemary Pauline Letts was the fifth of seven children. Her father was a paranoid schizophrenic who had sexual relations with his daughters, and she in turn molested her younger brothers. She took this hyper-sexualization to her new home after she met and married Fred West, and her first murder was Fred's daughter by another woman. The couple would go on to kill at least twelve people combined, including another daughter, as Rose was willingly prostituted out. Something I did not know is that some of the Wests' children were fathered by the johns who the killer couple would entertain. The house became a home of depravity, anonymously sitting in the middle of Cromwell Street. It wasn't until suspicions were raised with the disappearance of their oldest daughter that the Wests would finally be caught. Fred committed suicide in 1995, and Rose was sentenced to prison for life without parole.
I've always been interested in the childhood and upbringings of these serial killers because of the fact that "born to kill" is a rare phenomenon. Reading about the childhoods and parents of today's infamous murderers confirms that they weren't born, but made, with some of these parents doing things that are almost as bad as the murders the adult children would later commit. The reenactment scenes are dark and scary, and while listening to Rose's story, you can see why the fates of their victims were sealed as soon as she met the equally disturbed Fred West. Imagining what their large brood of children went through while in the house is horrifying to think about, witnessing the degradation and killings of their own siblings. I would be very interested to see if any of the johns' children ever found out who their biological father was, and how that man feels about what he knowingly or unknowlingly created. As time goes on, we may not find out. While the professional mental health personnel add gravitas, some of director Howard's shots and writing border on the sleazy. The truth is ugly enough without some of the scenes- including a very fake looking beating.
Also subtitled "Matriarch of Cromwell Street," this episode dares to discuss the guilt of Rose West's upbringing (was she controlling Fred all along?). It's not a "fun" watch, but an informative one.
Stats:
(2020) 47 min. (8/10)
-Written and Directed by David Howard
-Featuring Veronika Hyks, Fiona Lamont, Rose West, Fred West, Paul Britton, Brian Masters, Jane Carter Woodrow, Eric Cullen, Samantha Lundrigan, Adrian Needs
-(Amazon Prime Video Rated 13+)- Physical violence, sexual violence references, violence against children references, some sexual content, strong sexual references, strong adult situations
-Media Viewed: Amazon Prime Video
