Aileen Wuornos, America's first female serial killer was executed in 2002. Up until the day of her execution, English director Nick Broomfield delves further into Aileen's horrific childhood, interviewing her biological mother as well as Wuornos herself.

Aileen's interviews are lucid and delusional particularly focusing on her obsession with the police, whom she believes allowed her murders to happen to increase the potential profit from movies and books. If you enjoyed Charlize Theron's portrayal of America's first female serial killer, then you will find the real woman even more compelling and frightening.

In 1991 Nick Broomfield made 'Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer'. Aileen's lawyer, her born again Christian mother and the Florida state police had all been involved in trying to sell her story, that of America's first female serial killer, to the highest bidder. Aileen herself, who was convicted of murdering seven men, ironically emerged as the most honest person.

Nick's follow-up film, 'Aileen: Life & Death of a Serial Killer', looks at Aileen's violent, tortured childhood in Troy, Michigan and her subsequent years on the road as a hitch-hiking prostitute. On 9th October 2002, she was executed in Florida.

Together for the first time on DVD, these two films form a powerful statement against the death penalty, raising serious questions about the US legal system and the political impetus behind Aileen's exection. Both films were used by Charlize Theron as the basis for her Oscar-winning performance as Aileen in 'Monster', and they provide a disturbing and humane insight into the mind of a deeply paranoid, yet sympathetic, person.

90 mins, cert 15 2003

Region 2 DVD: UK & Europe, Japan, South Africa and the Middle East including Egypt