E-Mail This Article to a Friend AILEEN: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF A SERIAL KILLER

The story of Aileen Wuornos, the highway prostitute and serial killer executed in Florida for killing seven men, was popularized first by the media squall surrounding the case in 1992 and more recently by Charlize Theron, whose embodiment of Wuornos in the 2003 film Monster earned her an Oscar for Best Actress. Nick Broomfield, the simpering British documentarian, returns to Wuornos in his second wrenching documentary about the mad, tragic, and charismatic murderess. Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer (1992) explained how everyone involved in the case tried to make a buck by peddling the details to Hollywood. In the sequel, Broomfield tracks a history of abuse and argues against the death penalty, claiming that Wuornos was as much victim as victimizer. She started bartering blow jobs for cigarettes at age 9, had a baby at 13, and lived in the Michigan woods for two years. In interviews, Wuornos captivates; her snarled smile switches to bulging-eyed rage mid sentence. In the end, though, Broomfield’s project reeks of the same exploitation he previously condemned. "This world is nothing but evil," Wuornos says. "We have evil in us. All of us do." We can only wonder whether the director’s next subject will be Lynndie England. (89 minutes)