A filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friend's ex-girlfriend announces she is expecting his son.A filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friend's ex-girlfriend announces she is expecting his son.A filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friend's ex-girlfriend announces she is expecting his son.
- Awards
- 2 wins & 5 nominations total
Photos
Kurt Kuenne
- Self
- (voice)
Andrew Bagby
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Dr. Andrew Bagby)
Shirley Turner
- Self - Ex-Girlfriend
- (archive footage)
- (as Dr. Shirley Turner)
Zachary Andrew Turner
- Self - Son
- (archive footage)
- (as Zachary Andrew Bagby)
Heather Arnold
- Self - Former Fiance
- (as Dr. Heather Arnold)
Bob Bagby
- Self - Uncle
- (archive footage)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIn 2013, the Director of this film Kurt Kuenne, posted a video on his YouTube channel talking about what happened after the movie. This includes his and the grandparents activism to change the bail law in Canada. Video title The Legacy of Dear Zachary: A Journey to Change the Law (2013).
- Quotes
Kurt Kuenne: [to Andrew in home movie] I have a good idea: I'll go back in time and stop you from dying.
- Alternate versionsThe original cut of the documentary had a run time of over two hours and contains numerous other short scenes, most notably a segment in which Kuenne travels to England to interview Andrew's maternal relatives during a wedding.
- ConnectionsFeatured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Most Hard to Watch Documentaries (2018)
Featured review
Voyeurism is a funny thing. Watching other people's little dramas or lives may seem boring at the outset, but often times it can be just as interesting, if not more so, than anything a big studio can come up with. With "Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father," we as an audience get a glimpse into a man that we otherwise would never have known. And after viewing this film, I have to graciously thank writer/director Kurt Kuenne for this.
After the murder of his lifelong best friend, Dr. Andrew Bagby, filmmaker Kurt Kuenne decided to go and interview everyone who knew Andrew in order to give his late friend's soon-to-be born son a way to know his father. But unbeknownst to anyone, this film would turn into something completely different.
Reviewing this film is difficult. For one thing, no one had any idea where this film was going (Kuenne, who narrates, openly admits this, although no one could possibly imagine what was going to happen). But more importantly, this film has something that many films don't: passion. It has a voice. This film will make you laugh, cry, scream in both terror and anger, and so much more. Even the most politically, one-sided films do not speak to the viewer like this film. In that sense, this film is a masterpiece.
But, on a critical scale, it comes up a little short. For me, the most effective bits were the interviews about Andrew. Those were funny and touching. Even if it added a few extra minutes to the running time, it would have been worth it. I felt like I could have watched a whole day's worth of interviews about Andrew. But the film gets into the struggle between Shirley Turner, Andrew's ex-girlfriend and probable murderer and Andrew's parents, who are trying to seek custody Andrew's son, Zachary. The film sort of loses focus at times, and it really inhibits Kuenne's goal in letting us know who Andrew was. At the end, it almost seems like a piece of propaganda (see the movie and you'll understand). Judging by what happens, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, but still. Of minor note, the film only shows the good things about Andrew. Not that Kuenne turns him into some sort of flawless figure (Bagby does that himself), but it would have made Bagby seem more well-rounded.
Yet I wholeheartedly recommend this film. It introduces us to a wonderful person, and his name was Andrew Bagby.
After the murder of his lifelong best friend, Dr. Andrew Bagby, filmmaker Kurt Kuenne decided to go and interview everyone who knew Andrew in order to give his late friend's soon-to-be born son a way to know his father. But unbeknownst to anyone, this film would turn into something completely different.
Reviewing this film is difficult. For one thing, no one had any idea where this film was going (Kuenne, who narrates, openly admits this, although no one could possibly imagine what was going to happen). But more importantly, this film has something that many films don't: passion. It has a voice. This film will make you laugh, cry, scream in both terror and anger, and so much more. Even the most politically, one-sided films do not speak to the viewer like this film. In that sense, this film is a masterpiece.
But, on a critical scale, it comes up a little short. For me, the most effective bits were the interviews about Andrew. Those were funny and touching. Even if it added a few extra minutes to the running time, it would have been worth it. I felt like I could have watched a whole day's worth of interviews about Andrew. But the film gets into the struggle between Shirley Turner, Andrew's ex-girlfriend and probable murderer and Andrew's parents, who are trying to seek custody Andrew's son, Zachary. The film sort of loses focus at times, and it really inhibits Kuenne's goal in letting us know who Andrew was. At the end, it almost seems like a piece of propaganda (see the movie and you'll understand). Judging by what happens, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, but still. Of minor note, the film only shows the good things about Andrew. Not that Kuenne turns him into some sort of flawless figure (Bagby does that himself), but it would have made Bagby seem more well-rounded.
Yet I wholeheartedly recommend this film. It introduces us to a wonderful person, and his name was Andrew Bagby.
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- moviesleuth2
- Dec 13, 2009
- Permalink
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Your Father's Murderer: A Letter to Zachary
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $18,334
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $2,886
- Nov 2, 2008
- Gross worldwide
- $18,334
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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