Disclaimer: This post is meant to be tongue-in-cheek and is definitely not intended to offend anyone. I don’t take murder lightly at all, but sometimes, all we can do is throw up our hands and scream, “WTF is wrong with people?!”
I suppose, being a Canadian thriller writer with a blog called The Serial Killer Files, that I should comment on Canada’s newest media murder darling, Luka Magnotta.
| Photo courtesy of GlobalNews.ca |
For those of you not familiar with the story, here’s a quick rundown. Luka Magnotta, a 29-year-old prostitute and porn actor, is accused of killing and dismembering Montreal university student, Jun Lin. Magnotta videotaped the whole thing and posted it on a site called Best Gore *, and then mailed Lin’s body parts to a bunch of different places, including a political office in Canada’s capital city of Ottawa. He’s currently facing five charges, including first degree murder and defilement of a corpse.
So.
As a thriller writer who’s made up a few fictional killers of her own, I’ll obviously be following the Magnotta case with great interest. The case is fascinating to me, and not just because of the depraved nature of the killing and the fact that it happened in Canada, but because of Magnotta’s utterly desperate attempt at showmanship.
I mean, seriously. He posted the video online. Really?
After an international manhunt, Magnotta was arrested in Berlin and brought back to Montreal. At the time of his arrest, he’d been hanging out at an internet cafe, reading news reports about himself.
And I have to tell you, when I read this, I laughed. Because it’s just, well . . . so frigging stupid.
As a writer, I can’t help but think what a terrible fictional villain Luka Magnotta would make. If he wasn’t a real person who killed another real person in a horrible way, his character wouldn’t even qualify as interesting. But he’s not a character in a book, he’s real. And so of course the media is all over him. His treatment by police has even been compared to that of Hannibal Lecter.
But here’s the thing. Hannibal Lecter was a great fictional villain because he was smart and original. Luka Magnotta, in this writer’s humble opinion, would make an awful fictional villain because he’s, well, an ego-driven dumb ass. Is Magnotta psychopathic? Sure, I think so. But is he smart? No, I don’t think so.
And no writer or reader of fiction appreciates a villain who makes such colossal mistakes. If I created a villain like Magnotta, the novel would be a tough sell. It’s just too crazy to think that someone would murder someone else, post it on the internet, and believe he could get away with it. My agent would laugh at me. The plot stretches credibility.
But. This isn’t fiction. It really happened. And that’s what makes the story so fascinating.
And heck, maybe I’m wrong. Maybe Magnotta isn’t so stupid after all. Maybe he even expected to get caught. If fame is Magnotta’s ultimate goal – which I personally think it is – then we’re giving him exactly what he wants. We’re feeding into the media frenzy and plastering his face all over the news. Google “Luka Magnotta” and you’ll get over 48,000,000 results. Two friends of mine, Ben Lelievre and Mark Pryor, have already blogged about him. And of course, I AM BLOGGING ABOUT HIM RIGHT NOW.
(I will not, however, watch that video, unlike this teacher who actually played it for his tenth-grade class.)
Magnotta may not be worthy of fictional villain status, but that doesn’t matter, because he actually exists. Rightly or wrongly, we’re entranced. And wasn’t it Mark Twain who said that unlike fiction, the truth doesn’t have to make sense?
…Wait. What?
A teacher played that video for his class? I'm sorry, but that warrants a big ol' WTF! People have lost their minds.
This is such a creepy story. And so sensationalized, with the porn connection, the method of murder, and the Youtube video. Blech. Thank goodness he was a total dumb ass and they caught him right away. I knew you'd be all over this though, taking notes. Yes, as a character, he can definitely be improved upon. 🙂
*shudders* Yikes! Sadly, due to my 'day' job, this doesn't surprise me. I know, I need a new day job. 😉 It's a good thing this one isn't intelligent!
I read on him a lot too since it happened about 15 minutes of car from my house. The investigators said he's been rather careful. But the internet cafe stunt was his ego getting back to him. I haven't had the courage of watching the video. I saw some reaction vids on YouTube and the play by play frightens me. We'll know at his trial whether he's smart or dumb
You are so right. You make SUCH excellent points. Not only is truth often stranger than fiction but it has no place in fiction. Almost a decade ago, my family was in the middle of a real shitstorm as a result of someone very depraved who had done some very depraved things and one family member said to me–I will never forget this–"if I wasn't living it, I wouldn't even believe it." So true, so true. Weird how that works, isn't it?
Yes, he's definitely a sociopath, but it's his narcissism that got him captured. I'm sure he thought he was pretty smart.
I was about to say, if this were a submitted MS it would never make it past the slush pile! I think the Mark Twain saying goes something like: "The difference between real life and fiction is, fiction has to make sense!" Or something like that. It's so true, though, right?
Yeah, it's a strange contradiction. On one hand, fiction has to make sense – and truth is indeed stranger than fiction. Yet at the same time we have to work hard to make fiction larger than life. Magnotta certainly wouldn't make a credible fictional villain.
Damn, I was just about to whip out that Mark Twain quote, but you beat me to it! :p
This whole story is insane. And a teacher playing it for his class? What is that all about?! Crazy times.
That guy is a real nut job & nothing like Hannibal *shudder to think* I mean c'mon, YouTube? You're right, that's just idiotic, moronic, narcissistic, whatever you want to call it. Ugh…
Isn't this the guy they found out also posted videos of him torturing animals? Seems like I read he posted those before he made the snuff vid.
Entranced? Hardly. I've heard about him but (probably because I'm in the U.S.) I don't know anything about it…except that he looks psychotic.
That's why they say reality is stranger than fiction.
Sometimes its intelligence is lower as well.
I'm kinda stalled on the 10th grade teacher who showed that video to his class. WTH? I've seen a little bit on the news about that killer. Now there's a freak for you. But showing that to 16 yr olds? That's a freak of a whole nother stripe.
This just supports my claim that you can find a video about anything on YouTube. How completely ridiculous and awful. And what about that 10th grade teacher? Can you imagine how many outraged phone calls the school received?
Such a weird, horrifying story. And I can't believe that teacher showed the video! What on earth was he thinking???
Wow. That is weird and stupid. Real life criminals just don't stand up to fictional ones.
By the way, I think a lot of 10th graders would've thought the video was cool or something. I know I would've been much more interested in seeing something like that in 10th grade than the woman giving birth. But I'm pretty fascinated by serial killers and stuff. Heh.
Right? He should have known better. Not a good move.
It will be interesting to get more details as they unfold. I would have written him smarter, myself :). But it's hard to look away.
Yikes! What's your day job again? But it's not just you, I think we're all becoming more desensitized and harder to shock… sign of the times?
I don't disagree at all (I was being sarcastic with the dumb ass thing). He got as far as Germany so he's got to have some wits about him, but in terms of writing him as a villain in my book, I know I'd have to do better. He'd have to be caught after a longer chase, in a much more interesting way, and he'd have to be smarter about the YouTube video. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes out at trial.
Crazy how that works! You'd think it would be opposite, that we'd able to do anything we wanted with our fiction, but it so isn't the case. Fiction has to stick to possibilities (Mark Twain again, I think).
Totally his narcissism. I find this picture interesting, too – he's so pouty and intense, almost like he's *trying* to look like a killer.
It's sad, I want to just watch the story unfold because it's a true story and these things really did happen, but all I find myself doing is criticizing everything he did wrong! As if there's a "right way" of murdering and dismembering someone. It's possible I need a break from inventing serial killers. 🙂
Excellent point, Ian. How do we find that balance between credibility and larger than life? Always a struggle, especially in the thriller genre, where the stakes need to be really high right till the end.
We live in the era of YouTube! It's crazy to think this video would play in class, but I gotta wonder if kids these days are so desensitized to violence and sex that to them, it's not a big deal…. hmmm.
I know, right? I was all, "Pshaw, he is so NOT Hannibal Lecter." Ha.
Yes, I believe it's the same guy. Trying so hard to be a psycho. Sigh.
He sure looks the part, doesn't he? Mind you, we're now seeing what we're told to see. The thriller writer in me is pretty entranced – I wish I wasn't, honestly.
Amen to that, Alex.
I know, it's like in some ways, the teacher is just as much a freak as the killer here! I wonder if any of the kids were traumatized. Would I have been? I'd like to think so, but kids these days see so much more than we did at that age.
Honestly, YouTube scares me. Nothing is private anymore. Everybody wants to be a star. I will say this: his killing is a sign of the times we live in, where anyone with access to the internet can be an instant celebrity.
He must not have been thinking, is what I'm thinking. The kids wanted to see it, he gave in, and now he's fired. How does he even explain that in future job interviews? The world is sometimes crazier than we can imagine.
I agree with you, Cherie. I might have been have one of those kids wanting to see it had I been in his class. Obviously, the teacher is supposed to know better, but still, I can imagine I might have been curious… yeesh. Not now, though. For some reason I have no desire to see it now.
Are you sure it was on YouTube? I thought YouTube didn't allow excessive violence, which is why some people go to gore sites. The video was originally discovered on BestGore.com, the owners of which took it down once he was arrested, but by then it had been copied onto other sites.
Thanks so much for pointing this out. The earliest articles I read mentioned YouTube and I obviously should have looked closer. I've amended the post. Again, thanks!
The most intriguing part for me is that it's usually sex workers being victimised, so that's an interesting role reversal. However, without looking into it more (I first heard about it here), I'm already apprenhensive that the prostitute/porn actor angle is going to be fodder for conservatives to say that sex workers have no morals because look, a prostitute/porn actor killed someone! That's totally representative of all sex workers, boo them!
I love what you pulled from this, and yes, I think the entire story is even more titillating because he worked in porn. From a writer's perspective, would the story be as intriguing if he was, say, a middle-aged man who worked in a factory? Something to ponder.
How horrific. And I can't believe a teacher would show that to his class.
I think he should have been arrested just for wearing that tank top.
But I also think we(and our kids)are becoming totally de-sensitized to this level of violence. For a teacher to show that to his class and people to actually want to watch the video knowing what it contains…I'm not sure we are easily able to seperate reality from fiction any longer.
This is just a Sunday morning observation. My thought process runs no deeper than that.ha Is it possible to have a reading hangover? My head says yes.
Wow. Just… wow. A teacher showed it to 10 year olds?!
But yeah, Luke doesn't sound all that smart. If he were a story book villain, it would probably be a pretty short story.
Weird and stupid and definitely not smart! And the teacher wasn't smart either!!
The teacher is an idiot. I follow stories like these as well for my writing. I am so excited about the upcoming release of Freak. I am sorry that I have just now reviewed Creep. I loved it. Please read my review when you have a chance.
http://fictiontoolbox.blogspot.com/2012/06/creep-by-jennifer-hiller-riveting.html
Geez that's creepy. My husband is fond of the saying, "You can't make this stuff." In this guy's case, it's true.
Uh, it's late. That should be "You can't make this stuff up." LOL.
Jen,
He's got self-esteem issues, that's why he's reading news reports about himself. It makes him feel important. It's very sad.
D.
I now live back in the UK. I was married to a woman in Floria whose 14 year old son murdered his 8 year old neighbour. The case made international headlines. I met him. He, like Magnotta was carasmatic, handsome and unlike Magnotta, intelligent. He was sentenced to life without parole at age 15. I met a murderer, yes little English me, but I saw him monthly. I'd stare at his hands and couldn't fathom how those two hands could kill a little innocent girl for no reason. Happily divorced and back in England, I am shocked and astounded by Magnotta. The writer here is correct… The guy is obsessed with celebrity and after years of hours self promoting himself to no avail, his last resort, in his eyes, was the ultimate… Murder, and boy, big time murder. He's got fame, but he's lost everything. No more plastic surgery, no more hair implants, no more make-up, no more sun bathing, no more freedom. Very sad. Btw, fab article! Best wishes, Tim
Maybe it was the challenge – see if he could do something so bold as post it on the internet and still get away with it. Creepy!
Totally. And in that sense, he might make an interesting fictional villain, because sad villains are often layered villains. Nice to see you, D!
Wow, do I love reading real life stories like this. Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing this, Tim!
He must have gotten quite the adrenaline rush from the whole thing! So creepy!
Yuck — and honestly, the story about the teacher showing it to his students creeps me out even more!
You are welcome Jennifer. I come from a very different place to murderers… Thank goodness! Ha! I even flew to death row in Texas to meet for two days to meet a pen pal who's lost all his appeals. He was amazing to know. His name is Robert Gene Will. #999402. I had the main warden call me from Texas to England asking me if I was sure I wanted to meet him. The warden was so nice and gave me clearance. I was scared to death but it was an experience I found gratifying for me and for Rob. I couldn't write a book… more like volumes! Heehee! I love your writings Jennifer and have the utmost respect. Tim xx
I had heard about him. But I didn't know he was just hanging out waiting to be caught. Duh. Or, like you said, maybe just what he wanted. Sick little monkey either way.
Love the covers for your books, btw!
Thanks so much, Tim. And I'm thinking maybe you should write a book! 🙂
Yuck is right! Not that it will keep me from following the case… sigh…
"Sick little monkey" – totally! And thank you so much, I couldn't be happier with my covers! They did such a great job.
It would take me WAY too long! Ha! But I appreciate your kindness. Maybe you should write my book…. so much stuff has happened! You are the author here! Lol! On a serious note, I have contemplated it for years, but to write a book, as you will know, you have to write in a way where a reader can empathise with the story and to have to relive each episode that wasn't great, is hard work on the heart and the psyche. I think I should consider it one day. So much, so young. Anyway, I'm boring now, but I'd like to say I enjoy your blog loads. Must get your book, however it must be signed! Wink! xx