3½ Minutes, Ten Bullets

I gotta say, documentaries covering court cases I didn't know about get insanely suspenseful when it comes to reading the verdict.

On one hand, I feel like I'm intruding as a viewer by seeing the process unfold like this, but on the other hand, there are benefits to showing the way it works for the public at large, and in that instance, I think it does a solid job. Also: it tells its story within one movie, which I'll always say is better than a court case being stretched into another stupid miniseries that goes on five times longer than it needs to (OJ: Made in America is the exception, but it really does a lot more than just cover the infamous murder trial, and is more cinematic than the best of what Netflix has to offer in the genre to boot).

Watch this if you want further information about gun control in America, as well as the way race and the idea of self-defence can complicate an already emotional trial that the poor/super brave families and friends of the deceased must persevere through. Honestly, I felt sympathy at one point for the fiancée of the accused too- there's one pivotal scene featuring her that really changes a lot.

It's good, though heavy, and while it isn't fantastic in its editing and filmmaking and style, it does what it tries to do well. And again: 98 minutes >>>>>>>> eight 1-hour episodes on Netflix ANY DAY 😅

It is hard to review a documentary based around the killing of an individual. Considering film is almost always a form of entertainment it is hard to imagine being entertained by something as grim as this.

With that said, this is a great documentary, it shows both sides equally and allows the viewer to form their own opinions on the incident that the film is based on. Too many documentaries are biased or create their own 'facts' when dealing with their subject matter. This was different. Go watch it!

It is everything a documentary should be, an unbiased view at the world recorded through the camera that leaves the viewer with their own thoughts and ideas that are not the directors thoughts or ideas but original concepts that we have adopted through watching an honest piece of film making.

Good documentary about the killing of an African-American teenager in Florida the impact of the case and the trial of the perpetrator. Through good editing and subtle presentation of the court case, the film is able to show how "stand your ground" laws mud the waters even more instead of helping the justice system. The film does a good job of raising -and answering- important questions about human morality, cultural differences and perception, and the justice system. A few facts of the case were left out and you might feel that there's something missing in order to makes this a truly great docu, but overall it's still a well made and important film.

The day after Thanksgiving 2012, four male African-American teenagers in Florida pull into a gas station for cigarettes and gum, but a 47-year-old white man in the car parked next to them outside objects to their loud music. Michael Dunn later says in his testimony that he thought one of the boys, Jordan Davis, had a firearm and he perceived a threat on his life, resulting in a shooting that left 17-year-old Davis dead. Most likely, what really set Dunn off was the disrespect shown from a teenager towards a middle-aged man...a generation-gap problem that has existed since the dawn of civilization. The director of this emotional documentary, Marc Silver, takes the racial aspect of the case and builds and edits his film around it. We see Jordan's parents grieving his loss, we see his mother praying and worshipping and setting up a tiny cross in the sand on the beach, but hardly any time is spent on Dunn's fiancée (who comes across as an honest, interesting woman in court)--we don't even get her reactions after the verdicts are read. Silver wants to keeps a stirred pot boiling, and he isn't fascinated enough in the case as a whole to be completely objective (he's convicted Dunn already). The verdicts in both trials (this a result of a mistrial called on one of the counts, which was then retried off-camera) are fair, based on the actions of a man who was demanding respect by force. Dunn's motivations in that split-second when he took out his gun aren't probed in depth; Silver wants to reveal Dunn as a liar (which is true) and as a man with racist attitudes (which is debatable). When you come out of a documentary with more questions than answers, perhaps the film hasn't done a succinct enough job examining the central situation. We understand that Jordan's family is devastated, that he was a solid young man just out for a good time with his buddies (each shown to be completely innocent of malice). The trial judge says, "There are no winners or losers here," though, sadly, I don't think anyone heard him. **1/2 from ****

Seeing how effed up stand your ground laws are, this is a must see. I was just glad the final verdict was correct. But you can make that decision for yourself