With Zodiac Killer Project, we get a film with a twist. This one becomes a documentary about a documentary.

Or about a failed documentary, in this case. Filmmaker Charlie Shackleton wanted to make a program about the Zodiac Killer but this failed to come to fruition.

With Project, Shackleton leads us through what he would’ve done if he’d made the program. He gets into what interested him in the topic as well as the tale’s potential path to the screen.

As discussed, Shackleton wanted to adapt The Zodiac Killer Cover-Up: The Silenced Badge, a 2012 book by former California Highway Patrol officer Lyndon E. Lafferty in which Lafferty claims he figured out the identity of the notorious murderer. Shackleton states that he couldn’t get the rights to this text and that harpooned his stab at it.

Much of Project also shows us the locations involved and related elements. The film comes with narration from Shackleton as he offers a virtually scene-by-scene description of how the documentary would’ve progressed.

If all of that sounds very clever-clever, I agree. A documentary about a documentary that never got off the ground sounds meta as can be.

On the surface, I like the idea. Project seems like something that could offer an involving view of the obstacles and complications involved with modern-day documentary filmmaking.

However, Shackleton doesn’t really focus on what happened to scuttle the film he originally intended. The subject on which we get the most analysis relates to the clichés of “true crime” programs.

In these moments, Shackleton offers reasonable insight. He deconstructs the nature of documentaries that focus on topics such as the Zodiac Killer and points out the many standard elements these often utilize.

Otherwise, Shackleton does little more than show us the kinds of locations he wanted to use while he narrates the film he planned. Given that he couldn’t utilize the source he wanted, the whole thing feels like a thumb-nosing attempt to get around the lawyers.

Indeed, Shackleton occasionally mentions that he needs to take pains to avoid quotes and references to Lafferty’s book that would violate legal restrictions. This makes the end product even more limited.

A lot of Project simply becomes a view of California scenery accompanied by Shackleton’s remarks about what we would’ve seen if he’d gotten the rights to Lafferty’s work. Shackleton briefly appears on camera about halfway into the film and then a couple more times later but the film usually seems like a travelogue.

Project scores points when it deconstructs the “true crime” genre. However, too much of it just winds up as a dull recitation of Shackleton’s original plans so the final film seems pretty flat.

Zodiac Killer Project appears in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. The image looked acceptable but not memorable.

Granted, I suspect some – or much – of this came by design, as filmmaker Charlie Shackleton likely wanted to give the movie a sense of “documentary grit”. Still, it meant a mix of minor specks and marks that I wouldn’t expect from a circa 2025 production.

Sharpness also seemed iffier than anticipated. The film consists mostly of location shots and these veered from fairly accurate to oddly soft.

No issues with jagged edges or shimmering emerged. Edge haloes also remained absent.

Colors went with a subdued sense of natural, as they tended to remain low-key. They felt adequate but not impressive.

Blacks were fairly rich and low-light shots offered appropriate clarity. This turned into a watchable but unimpressive visual presentation.

Given the film’s scope, I didn’t expect much from the film’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 audio. Unsurprisingly, the mix ended up as restrained as I anticipated.

This meant a track heavy on dialogue, as Shackleton’s narration dominated. Some minor environmental effects cropped up as well, though these largely remained stuck in the forward channels.

Some score popped up along the way as well, and the rare louder uses of music spread around the room in a moderate manner. Nonetheless, this chatty mix didn’t do much with the soundscape.

Audio quality worked fine, with dialogue that appeared natural and distinctive. Music showed appealing range and heft.

Though they lacked much to do, effects brought reasonable accuracy. While the soundtrack suited the documentary, it nonetheless seemed wholly mediocre.

When we go to extras, we get an ”uncommentary” track. Given that the feature itself consists entirely of narration from filmmaker Charlie Shackleton, should we expect to get new thoughts from him here?

No, and I mean that literally, as the “uncommentary” strips the mix of Shackleton’s remarks during the finished film. This seems pretty stupid, honestly, and it exists as nothing more than a dumb joke.

From the film’s Chicago premiere, we get a Q&A with Shackleton. It runs 23 minutes, 47 seconds.

Interviewed by critic Zachary Lee, Shackleton discusses what interested him in the Zodiac Killer case and aspects of that history, the development and production of Project, and reactions to the film. Shackleton fills in some gaps left by the movie.

Rejected Sundance Meet the Artist Video goes for five minutes, 15 seconds and features Shackleton as he wanders around London and offers a cheeky dissection of the guidelines Sundance gave him to follow in his self-introduction clip. This becomes amusing.

Next comes a Camera Test for “King Cadbury” (7:03) that shows Shackleton as he stands in front of a location and also recites/discusses an old candy commercial before we see that ad. It's strange but entertaining.

Full Evocative B-roll Reel spans 56 minutes, 24 seconds and gives us what Shackleton describes as “standalone images that evoke a scene without showing much of it”. Project comes with some of these but we get lots more here. It's a pretty boring compilation.

With Charlie Shackleton on Paint Drying and the Letterboxd, we find a two-minute, 36-second reel in which Shackleton discusses issues he encountered with the UK Censor Board and a prank he played on them as well as reactions from readers of the site Letterboxd. I wouldn't want to watch the 10-hour Paint Drying - a title to be taken literally - but it's a fun "screw you" on Shackleton's part.

We also get Community Phenomenon Letterboxd Visits Charlie Shackleton’s Paint Drying Wall (3:08), a reel in which the filmmaker reveals that film's location. It becomes mostly redundant after the prior reel unless you really want to find out how to visit the wall.

The disc opens with ads for Secret Mall Apartmenr and The Story of Film. We also get a trailer for Project.

As a ‘documentary about a failed documentary’, Zodiac Killer Project comes with an intensely ‘high-concept’ premise. While it occasionally scores points as a dissection of the ‘true crime’ genre, too much of it just seems dull and semi-pointless. The Blu-ray comes with mediocre picture and audio as well as a mix of bonus features. Despite an intriguing idea behind it, Project feels slow and without much insight.