West Of Memphis
Director: Amy Berg
Rating: 5/5
2012 has been a fantastic year for documentary movies and West of Memphis is one of the standout films in this genre.
The movie sees Amy Berg return to the director's chair as she collaborates with Damien Echols and Lorri Davis along with filmmakers Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh to bring this story to the big screen.
The documentary tells the hitherto unknown story behind an extraordinary and desperate fight to bring the truth to light.
Told and made by those who lived it, Berg's unprecedented access to the inner workings of the defence, allows the film to show the investigation, research and appeals process in a way that has never been seen before; revealing shocking and disturbing new information about a case that still haunts the American South.
From start to finish this is a movie that will both shock and stun as you can never really quite get your head around just how big a miscarriage of justice this was.
Berg really gets under the skin of the case and she is not afraid to ask the difficult questions - 'how could they get something so wrong for so long'.
It is a movie that will make the blood boil for several reasons; three innocent men were incarcerated, three families still haven't got justice, a killer is still at large.
Using articulate speakers such as Peter Jackson and Eddie Veder the movie puts forward alternative ideas and theories and raises major questions about the original case.
But as well as trying to uncover the truth West of Memphis is also a very emotional movie as the film follows Pam Hobbs, mother of one of the victims, who is still looking for justice.
The moments with her are some of the most powerful as she is still tortured by what happened to him - particularly when you find out who could well have killed him.
But West of Memphis is also a character study as the film look at Damien Echols, one of the boys jailed for the murders. Despite everything that has happened to him he is not a man filled with hate instead he just wants to get on with his life.
Amy Berg has delivered a movie that is riveting from start to finish and the two hour twenty six minute run time doesn't feel long at all.
Berg has taken a very controversial subject and a topic still feel very strongly about and handled it with a real care.
With the help of everyone involved she has pieced the puzzle together to make a very powerful film.
West of Memphis is out now
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw