96% West of Memphis

All Critics (70) | Top Critics (18) | Fresh (67) | Rotten (3)

Happy, sad, inspiring, infuriating, right and terribly wrong, all at the same time.

Berg's film is as much an indictment of the state of Arkansas' legal system as it is the prosecution.

Berg's film helps illuminate a case that should certainly be the shame of the state of Arkansas, and perhaps the criminal justice system of the entire United States.

Dubious evidence; suspicious confessions; conveniently located "poor white trash" (Echols' words) to take the rap: The case stank from the beginning, Berg's film argues.

Less an investigative report than a portrait of the community that forms around an ongoing court case, this conveys a patient understanding of the intricacies of law and human behavior that may be termed Kieslowskian.

"West of Memphis" is the fourth film about one of the most heinous cases of wrongful conviction in American judicial history. Do we need a fourth film? Yes, I think we do.

(Director Amy) Berg's doc is gripping, often infuriating, but in the end hopeful about the ability of truth and innocence to prevail thanks to the efforts of those who strive against all obstacles to uphold them.

The new film is largely a recap of the older ones, with more celebrity testimonials and fewer Metallica songs but little fresh insight into the miscarriage of justice it chronicles.

Extols the efforts of celebrities to win the release of three innocent men [and is] suspenseful when it's straightforward-the best CSI investigation that money can buy.

Nearly overwhelms you with hopelessness, if not an adrenaline rush of rage - even if you're familiar with the case.

It's a beautifully done piece of work in its own right, yet viewed beside the trilogy which preceded it, it comes across a bit like "Paradise Lost 3b - the Celebrity Edition."

A whodunit in which truth devastatingly becomes a luxury.

New evidence and a fresh perspective keep the subject matter compelling.

Filmmaker Amy Berg (Oscar nominated Deliver Us From Evil) has once again struck documentary gold with her hard-hitting journalistic feature, West of Memphis.

A lot of it is treading on ground that's been laid by other people, but there's a lot of great new stuff, too.

The infuriating facts in this famous case are illuminated with new human detail.

Diligent, complex and justly indignant.

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Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/west_of_memphis/

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