{"id":19165,"date":"2016-01-23T12:17:52","date_gmt":"2016-01-23T02:17:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/?p=19165"},"modified":"2016-01-23T12:17:52","modified_gmt":"2016-01-23T02:17:52","slug":"making-a-murderer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/?p=19165","title":{"rendered":"Making A Murderer"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"tagtelevision\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"makingamurderer\"<\/a><\/p>\n

M<\/span>aking A Murderer<\/em> is a morbid true crime companion piece to last year\u2019s The Jinx<\/em>.<\/p>\n

In The Jinx<\/em>, we learn about Robert Durst, a multi-millionaire who had the power and influence to seemingly buy his way out of multiple homicides over the course of his lifetime (although the film does end with an incredible final twist).\u00a0 With Making A Murderer<\/em>, it tells the opposite story.\u00a0 A man from a low socio-economic background who sensationally appears to be prosecuted for a murder he did not commit -not once but twice.<\/p>\n

It is an infuriating, mind-bending, truth-is-stranger-than-fiction show that will likely unnerve even the most wide eyed optimist\u2019s view on law enforcement.\u00a0 The gross miscarriage of justice so coolly handed out by the prosecution and supported by so many individuals in the series (policemen, investigators, witnesses, media personalities) serve as a warning that this is the sort of lynch mob mentality that could happen in any community.\u00a0 It\u2019s a modern day Salem witch trial in which the assumption of guilt hangs heavily over the accused before the trial even starts.<\/p>\n

Making A Murderer <\/em>tells the story of Steven Avery, a troubled ne\u2019er-do-well who wrongfully served eighteen years in prison for a rape charge before being cleared by DNA evidence, only to become the prime suspect in a homicide case less than two years after his release.\u00a0 This ten episode series gives us a brief (yet alarming) glimpse of Avery\u2019s initial conviction in the mid Eighties before jumping headlong into the case where he and his nephew Brendan are accused of the murder of Teresa Halbach, a car magazine photographer whose remains are uncovered at the site of the Avery family estate.<\/p>\n

\"avery\"<\/a><\/p>\n

For a documentary told without a narrator, Making A Murderer<\/em> does an extraordinary job processing a massive volume of information and presenting it to the viewer in a way that is easy to follow.\u00a0 The extended Avery family are a colourful cast of misfits. \u00a0The father Allan Avery is a gruff and grizzled mechanic. \u00a0The mother Dolores Avery\u00a0looks like she needs a hug.\u00a0 There\u2019s some shifty looking relatives like Scott Tadych and Bobby Avery\u00a0with questionable haircuts and even more questionable motives.\u00a0 Then there’s Teresa\u2019s brother Mike.\u00a0 Key figures in the Manitowoc police county.\u00a0 Head prosecutor Ken Kratz. \u00a0Defence attorneys Dean Strang and Jerry Buting. \u00a0By the end of the series, you’ll come to know this motley crew very well and will likely form strong opinions about nearly all of them.<\/p>\n

From the open moments of the case, Making A Murderer<\/em> is compelling viewing.\u00a0 The lead up to the trial begins in fantastical circumstances \u2013 a media briefing from Ken Kratz\u00a0describing a gruesome murder that involves kidnapping, sex crimes, gunshots to the head and slashed throats.\u00a0 Kratz explains that the case was blown wide open when teenager Brendan Avery couldn’t stand the guilt of his actions and confessed in full to law enforcement officers.<\/p>\n

Taken on face value, it appears to be an open and shut case.\u00a0 Brendan\u2019s confession, Teresa\u2019s car found on the Avery property and her remains in the burn pit behind Steven\u2019s trailer all point to a terrible and senseless murder perpetrated by a murderous uncle and nephew.<\/p>\n

Or so we think.\u00a0 We are introduced to Steven\u2019s defence attorneys Dean Strang and Jerry Buting.\u00a0 In a series that is otherwise depressingly populated with greedy, corrupt and incompetent officials of the criminal justice system, Strang and Buting are a shining beacon of hope.\u00a0 Both are intelligent, lucid and tenacious law practitioners.<\/p>\n

The pair pick apart the case at every turn.\u00a0 They poke glaring holes in the testimonies of the witnesses and experts called upon by the prosecution.\u00a0 They cast doubt over the reliability of the DNA evidence in a clear and articulate fashion that can be understood by the laymen on the jury.\u00a0 Most importantly \u2013 Brendan\u2019s confession \u2013 the centrepiece of the prosecution\u2019s case appears to be blatantly coerced out of a young man with a low IQ and no idea what he is getting into.\u00a0 Confused and disoriented after confessing to the murders \u2013 he asks his mother on a heart breaking phone call whether he will be home \u2018in time to watch Wrestlemania<\/em>.\u2019<\/p>\n

\"kenkratz\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Strang and Buting show incredible prowess in dismantling the prosecution\u2019s case.\u00a0 On more than one occasion they run circles around the hapless Manitowoc police county officers \u2013 none more memorably than when they catch out the dubious Officer Lenk putting in a phone call to dispatch asking for the license plate of Teresa\u2019s vehicle, describing the appearance of the car before he should have any knowledge of what it looks like<\/em>.\u00a0 He is caught out in a devastating lie \u2013 a total collapse of his credibility \u2013 in a scene that would be right at home in a fictional courtroom drama.<\/p>\n

Despite the number of times the defence team appear to blow the prosecution\u2019s case out of the water, Strang in particular remains cautious with his optimism.\u00a0 \u201cNo sane lawyer looks forward to presenting an argument to the jury that the police framed his client.\u201d<\/p>\n

The madness in the courtroom in of itself would make for incredible viewing but the series also has complete and unfettered access to the Avery family\u2019s reaction to the trial.\u00a0 We see their highs and lows, their fights with one another and their musings on the trial itself.\u00a0 The Averys have that distinctive turn of phrase and mannerisms of the American Mid West popularized by the films of the Coen Brothers (most notably Fargo<\/em>).\u00a0 So often conversations about dark and heavy handed subject matter \u2013 prison, murder, suicide etc \u2013 is discussed with a wry sarcasm and punctuated with \u2018uh huh\u2019s and \u2018yeah\u2019s.<\/p>\n

The series appear to show conclusively that there is reasonable doubt over Avery\u2019s guilt.\u00a0 So who did commit the murder?\u00a0 Steven\u2019s brother-in-law Scott Tadych and nephew Bobby Dassey both have absurd alibis to account for their whereabouts at the time of the murder (\u201cwe drove past one another on the road and both looked at the clock and saw it was 3:15pm\u201d).\u00a0 Teresa\u2019s ex-boyfriend supposedly \u2018guesses\u2019 the password to her voicemail when she is reported missing and deletes the messages<\/em>.\u00a0 Incredibly, none of these people are ever pursued by the investigators as possible suspects.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, it doesn\u2019t fall on Strang and Buting to identify Teresa\u2019s killer.\u00a0 They are there to prove reasonable doubt that Steven Avery committed the murder.\u00a0 They appear to do this emphatically but as viewers will suspect right from the outset, it is a fruitless endeavour.\u00a0 As Strang laments during an interview before the verdict is delivered \u2013 \u201cSelfishly, I hope he is guilty.\u00a0 Because if he isn\u2019t, and innocent man is locked away for a second time\u2026I don\u2019t know if I can bear that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"strang\"<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s difficult to feel anything but helpless by the end of the series.\u00a0 There are so many people that appear complicit in this miscarriage of justice.\u00a0 Brendan\u2019s original defence attorney Len Kachinsky\u00a0is a mug for the camera and never once entertains the notion of his innocence.\u00a0 The Manitowoc County police officers almost certainly planted evidence.\u00a0 In delivering Steven Avery\u2019s sentencing, Judge Willis pointed to Avery\u2019s \u2018crimes of escalating severity\u2019 which reveals that he doesn\u2019t believe in Avery\u2019s innocence from the trial in 1985 of which he was cleared by DNA evidence.\u00a0 Absurdly, Steven and Brendan are both prosecuted of the same murder with Ken Kratz successfully arguing that the murder took place in the garage in one case and in Steven\u2019s trailer in the other.<\/p>\n

The series is damning to watch.\u00a0 It\u2019s not clear whether the rage will be sufficiently maintained to give either Avery another trial or if there will be any ramifications in the Wisconsin justice system.\u00a0 The only small measure of satisfaction we gleam from the final episode is that one of the primary instigators in perverting the course of justice \u2013 Ken Kratz \u2013 was publicly humiliated and resigned in disgrace\u00a0when it was revealed that he sexted a DV victim years later.<\/p>\n

Making A Murderer <\/em>is a sobering and disquieting program.\u00a0 There are brief pockets of humanity \u2013 such as Mr and Mrs Avery\u2019s unwavering loyalty to their son \u2013 but mostly its just madness.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A documentary series about a man who is wrongfully imprisoned for 17 years who is freed only to become accused of another crime<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":19169,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[2409,2206,817],"class_list":["post-19165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tv","tag-making-a-murderer","tag-netflix","tag-the-jinx"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=19165"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19174,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19165\/revisions\/19174"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/19169"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=19165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=19165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thefatwebsite.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=19165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}