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Citizen X Movie Review

Citizen X is a 1995 television crime film directed by Chris Gerolmo and starring Stephen Rea and Donald Sutherland in the main roles. It is an exceptional film.

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“He may be stupid, but he’s in charge“

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It covers the efforts of detectives in the Soviet Union to capture an unknown serial killer of women and children in the 1980s, and the successive bureaucratic obstacles they consistently encountered. This is a textbook example of how to make a serial killer movie and do something unique with it. There were so many serial killers in recent history, but this movie differentiates itself from many other genre films by focusing on a different country, and consequently satirizing the many problems that this country had, in particular in the area of justice.

As a result of this strong emphasis on social themes, the movie may not appeal to the regular serial killer thriller genre fans, but for me the film was highly sophisticated, very heartwarming and also unexpectedly funny in equal measure. This is the type of American movie that nowadays would not be made as the Russophobia from the US these days is beyond extreme, but back in the nineties they could actually make a film that made fun of the country’s problems, but not of all their citizens as the two protagonists are not only immensely likable, but genuine heroic figures as well.

Yes, Burakov and Fetisov are incredible characters. The former is a detective who unfortunately doesn’t get proper support system to do his job due to the horrible bureaucratic obstacles of the Communist regime at a time when false dignity and standing were more important than actually doing your job right. The latter is a man in power who does realize how to fight this system patiently and that dichotomy between the two men provided a very interesting dynamic.

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Stephen Rea has rarely been better and he was so likable and wonderful here. You root for the guy to succeed as you really buy his passion and investment in this case. But Donald Sutherland was absolutely incredible. In fact, this just might be his career-best role because he was perfectly nuanced in his line delivery and facial expressions while also being rather funny and at times even hilarious with his witty remarks and dry sense of humor.

The friendship and genuine collegial support that blossomed between the two was beautiful to witness and they are the beating heart of the film. Max von Sydow was reliably terrific in a smaller, but important role of the psychiatrist who was crucial in getting the confession out of the murderer. Speaking of Chikatilo, he was superbly performed by Jeffrey DeMunn and just so creepy and disturbing. The murder scenes are sparse, but all are eerie and horrifying. The psychological evaluation of his profile was also explored here and it all made sense.

Citizen X also focuses on the many problems of the Soviet bureaucracy and how constricting it was to police investigators or anybody who went against the system. The movie also depicts a closeted homosexual man who would pursue other gay men only because of his internalized homophobia. These constant left turns actually helped the murderer kill more victims throughout his reign of terror and the movie is a tragic depiction of how the system can turn against the people instead of helping them.

Citizen X is technically stupendous for a TV movie. It was filmed in Hungary and that authenticity shows through great production design and strong details. The directing, editing and pacing are all excellent while the dialogue is absolutely outstanding. Yes, it could have been more thrilling, but the film faithfully depicts these real life events while continually elevating the material with its amazing satire. It’s such an underrated work.

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