Title: Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hill (1996)
Genre: Documentary
Director: Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky
Tagline: Whose innocence is really lost?
Grade: B
Good Movie For: People with a strong stomach, teenage sleuths, Metallica fanatics
I don't entirely know how I came about selecting this movie for my Netflix queue. It might have been mentioned on a tv show that I was watching. A friend might have recommended it to me. A stranger might have whispered it into my ear. All I know is that it ended up in the top slot and I had to watch it. I had briefly read the synopsis of the film on the DVD cover so I knew the gist of what the film was about, but it didn't fully prepare me for what I watched.
The film is pretty long for a documentary. Typically docs round out at about an hour and a half. This was two and a half hours, but even with the prolonged build up, I was still completely enthralled in the story of these three young men. The concept reminded me of The Thin Blue Line in the aspect that there is a definitive verdict to the trial, but the filmmakers present a case where you aren't entirely sure who is and isn't innocent.
The film was good and interesting. What I didn't like about it though was the horrifically graphic images that the filmmakers chose to include. I understand that the images and pictures were used to drive home a point of the gruesome nature of the murders, but there inherently is a fine line between emphasis and the gag reflex. Looking past that though, this was a good watch. But refrain from listening to Metallica after. People will think you're worshipping Satan.
You might want to say a couple hail mary's before too.
You know.
Just to be safe.
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