Scène de crime: Les champs macabres du Texas

Split across 3 episodes, this docu-series tackles a spate of mysterious deaths arising in Texas and, more specifically, along the I-45 highway in Houston. In the mid 1980's, the bodies of three women are found in the Calder Road field. Fast forward to 1991 and another body is found, with the area eventually dubbed as "The Texas Killing Fields."

As more victims are found - all the while showing bad police work, suspicious culprits and shocking revelations - it soon becomes apparent that this case is much bigger than it initially appears. But who is responsible? Is it a serial killer? Are there multiple killers? Or is there a conspiracy with law enforcement? All of this is investigated in more detail, although those looking for all the answers may find themselves a little dismayed by the ending.

In the end, they throw a name out that I don't even remember hearing in the first two episodes, and then they wrap up the whole series. But prior to that they keep bouncing around between this name and that name, reshowing the same pictures and very very slowly building up to some of the actual facts in the case. When I got to the end I felt like I had been punked. There's not really enough data to make a determination, as a member of the audience. But I do think for the police or FBI there is definitely enough information to make a determination. Another review claims that this was a missed opportunity to spotlight the shoddy police work. Well I kind of disagree because I believe that it was blaringly obvious, but I also disagree that this is about them. I remember the 70s as a teenager the '80s and '90s were times when we were taught about not getting into strangers cars not getting out of our car if we have a flat tire, not hitchhiking alone and things like that. Believe it or not we didn't have the elaborate bus systems that we have now in large and small cities, we had to hitchhike or find a ride or walk. I believe, in that sense, the producers here have assumed that all or most of the audience watching is familiar with the way in which some serial killers will disable a potential victims car and then show up to help them. That's the kind of thing they didn't need to say out loud. What bothers me most about this series is that - now trust me I'm bad with math - but they said 35 murders took place in those fields, and yet they only focused on four of them. Why? I appreciate the real life people that have kept these girls deaths in their hearts and tried to help their families, I hope that Tim Miller actually sees some of that money he won. But what about the other 31 girls? I mean if they're going to mention it why not tell us more. I guess I'll have to look online to find out if Reese - who I've never heard of through the whole series until the last 5 minutes - is the one responsible. And early on in the film they tell us that whoever did the murders in the seventies couldn't have been Clyde because he was in prison but then they try to blame him for all of them because he apparently did kill one. And in my mind that's the problem : there is a serial killer and then there is this one guy who is a killer and a pedophile but not necessarily a serial killer. And God bless his heart but have they completely ruled out Adam? Did they check his property before it was sold after his death? I mean being bullied has been a reason for people to take their lives, just ask any High School principal. And Psychopaths don't normally kill themselves unless they're about to go to prison. But after profiling him as a suspect when was he cleared by the fbi? And with such shoddy police work, are we sure that it was either a suicide or an accident? So I feel like this series is really more of a piece of cheese that never leads you to anything. I'm not sure what it's intent is because while I appreciate the four victims it is focused on why did it bring all this other information in and then just leave it dangling in the air like a faulty internet connection? I think what Netflix accomplished here is getting these victims back into the public's eye, or into the public's eye for the first time perhaps, and spotlighting the people who have devoted their time and resources to pursuing leads and helping others. Overall not a big waste of time but for me solid five stars.

This is one of the better documentaries of past unsolved crimes. Yes, it is disturbing and sad but it is respectfully done.

It focuses on the known victims and their families. As it should. It wasn't graphic or sensational.

The series really brings home how the loved ones lives are permanently changed and they never forget their loss, nor their desire for justice so this won't happen to other young women or their families.

It also goes into the frustration and helplessness of the police and its terrifying effect on the entire area.

It is downright terrifying how often women and children are preyed upon.

Obviously a hideously horrendous story, in terms of the victims and family left behind. However, this actual documentary... I don't feel it did any of that justice.

Sooo many shots of photos on a table, random streets, woods, the sky, etc etc. Genuinely in every five minutes of screentime, three minutes of that are just random scenery shots or the exact same repeated shots of headstones/photos.

I also felt it was really quite disjointed and jumped about on the timeline and victims with no real cohesion.

A LOT of time is spent with one of the victim's fathers. Of course the viewer feels deeply for him, but so, so much time is spent with him with not a lot of information gleaned from it. He seems incredibly miserable and I wanted someone to just say to him, "you can stop." The documentary also kind of jumps over the fact that he harassed and possibly drove a person of interest to suicide as he became obsessed with him and pinning the crime on him. That was... unsettling.

In relation to that, there's very, very little actual critique of the police department and the absolute farce of so much of the initial investigations. It's again kind of mentioned then glossed over.

And a more nitpicky critique - when they're talking about the court records and it's stated that the murderer "had sex with and then murdered (victim)" - Jesus wept, he did not 'have sex with', he raped her. A huge difference.

Again; a horrific story. Just... very poorly documented.

The only spoiler in this review is that there are no spoiler's because we all know how Netflix documentaries turn out. Netflix, please pull yourself together. There were at least 2 dozen victims. Episodes 1 and 2 were ok but 3 was just tunnel vision. This reminds me of the Netflix documentary with the catholic nun. There was a whole series of events with multiple victims, but the documentary goes off on some singular tangent. These documentaries are getting worse in terms of telling a story about multiple victims. The subject in these Netflix documentaries ends up changing at some point in the series. Just like their other documentaries, we are led down a path in one direction but then we are pushed off a cliff so we land in the opposite direction. Definitely worth the watch if you want to learn about the area, but do not expect to learn about more than 1.5 victims stories out of a few dozen victims.