Not Our Son (1995) (TV)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Michael Ray Rhodes

Writer (WGA):

Scott Swanton (written by)

Release Date:

3 MÁRCIUS 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A Seattle household secretly cooperates with police in a case that links a family member to widespread arson. |

Plot Keywords:

Arson | Fire | Radio | Son | Manhunt

Cast

Neil Patrick Harris	...	Paul Kenneth Keller
Gerald McRaney	...	George Keller
Tom Verica	...	Randy Litchfield
Ari Meyers	...	Ruth Keller
Scott Allan Campbell	...	Dane Whetsel
Tom McBeath	...	Ken O'Connor
Stephen E. Miller	...	Greg Knapp
Cindy Pickett	...	Margaret Keller
Jason Gaffney	...	Ben Keller
David Lovgren	...	Preston
Gary Chalk	...	Mike Dombrowski
Ken Camroux	...	Fire Chief
Brenda Crichlow	...	Carol Atkins
Denalda Williams	...	Janet
William R. Davies	...	Police Chief

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

Multimedia Motion Pictures

The Seattle Specter

Readers Digest had an article on this case called "Stalking The Seattle Specter". Forensic Files also had an episode on this case recently. Paul Keller was one of the worst arsonsits in American history. He set almost 100 fires in Seattle, one of which killed some elderly people in a retirement home. Like the Unabomber, Keller was caught not with brilliant detective work, but by his own family turning him in. His brother saw a composite sketch of the serial arsonist on tv and realized it was his own brother. Paul Keller had been troubled since birth (his father said they had a life of hell with him), but I cannot even begin to imagine him family's horror and grief when they realized it was their son who was the Seattle specter. The Kellers gave the reward money to the victims and publicly apologized to them. This movie is an excellent portrayal of a family's anguish. Gerald McRaney is wonderful as always as the father who has to betray his own son to save innocent lives. Neal Patrick Harris is wonderful and creepy as Paul. He looks so unassuming that its hard to believe the evil that lurks in his soul. By the way, the psychological profile that they did of the Arsonist matched Paul Keller almost exactly, even predicting that he would be a traveling salesman who used his own automobile. What got me about this film and the real life case is that Keller had absolutely no remorse at all for the horror he caused innocent people and his own family. He was a sociopath with absolutely no conscience at all. He seemed proud of what he did when they interrogated him and he bragged about how he eluded the police and firemen.