The 12th Victim

I cried out loud all by myself, clapped out loud to an empty room, jumped off my couch like a teenage cheerleader (im actually a 46 yr old exhausted woman who works 10.5hr nightshifts at Amazon), and dropped to my knees and prayed while watching this documentary. Caril..I left home at 11yrs old and watching this made me think of all the times i went with or stayed with an older, possibly slightly dangerous man because I was either terrified of him, cold, hungry, or just so tired i needed a warm soft bed. Therefore, there is no doubt in my mind that i would've followed any crazy idiot ANYWHERE if my siblings or my parents lives were threatened in ANY way and hearing your story has made me look back to what i've went through and made me see how easily something like this could've happened to me. And terrifies me to think of how many other women this has happened to. I am so sorry for what you went through but it sure has made me awful Damn proud to be a woman because you have reinforced my belief in the fact that WOMEN WILL NEVER STAND FOR BEING HELD DOWN!!!! When we live the truth, stand for the truth, and speak the truth.... WE WILL BE HEARD...and your vindication in the form of a pardon is at the top of my daily prayer list. May the balance of right and wrong be in your favor because girl....you certainly deserve it. I am so sorry for the shittiness of society and I wish for you the seat at the front gate of heaven cause i dont about you but, instead of getting in, i think it'll be a whole lot funner to see who gets kicked outta line!

As far as the filmmaking style went it could have been better and more focused. But the actual story is good and it's about time that Carol got fair treatment! The system convicted her before she even went down trial. She has passed numerous lie detector tests and passed all of them and never once in all the years since 1958 has she ever changed her story. Most investigators will tell you that people are lying will change their story a lot. Furthermore, I knew Carol when I worked at the same hospital with her in Lansing and she was a sweet and loving person and everyone absolutely loved her. I have seen her cry many times over what happened to her and cried for the people who lost their lives, including her own family. I hope that she will get the part in that she deserves. I love you Caril and I was very proud to call you my friend.

Again I believe its noteworthy to point out that I can not remark upon the actual subject matter (other than it definitely being worthwhile of being told, in terms of human interest), but merely the mechanics and technical aspects of the film ITSELF - {which is wierd because this is only true in cases of documentary films}

Here is my biggest issue, and it's a big one - shortly into episode one, we hear 'the words' of Starkweather read to us as if its the man's voice and inflection and cadance and emphasis, HOWEVER it's not the voice of Starkweather at all, nay, it's a voice actor and that's not fair - that's not kosher - that's BAD BUSINESS - especially considering they never do tell the viewer that it's an audible recreation

Similarly, much of it is filmed in what I like to call 'Confuse-a-Vison', where they smash cut quickly between and thru still photos and images that are circa 1950s but have zero connection to the actual case - mere filler shown under the guise that the viewer might see this and feel that the film maker has all of this never before seen footage - however once again this is NOT the case

Now I'm not saying this is unacceptable, however at no time are we told about these recreations but rather left to either be cowed into believing that we're watching and listening to authentic relics of the case when simply we are not

That all being said, for me, it's a massive detractor.

Interesting docuseries about a case of which I wasn't aware (not a yank or a Springsteen fan thankfully), but that clearly has a hold on the American psyche.

As well as outlining the serious issues with how the case of the 12th (or 1st) victim and only survivor of the USA's first sociopathic spree killer of the TV news-age it contextaulises, both historically and culturally, those and future difficulties Caril has faced in gaining access to proper justice.

It also touches on the USA's obsession with glamourising guns, violence and misogynist men through pulp fiction, music, TV and movies, whilst sexualising,moralising and demonising the 'women' around them, even when those 'women' are children who've just turned fourteen.

It briefly alludes to the perilous and peculiar set-up of justice in the USA where law enforcement and prosecutors are elected rather than employed on merit, and therefore under pressure to get the results a baying mob of local constituents demand of them in a country that is uncivilised enough to still have the death penality in the C21th whilst pretending to be all sorts of permutations of 'Christian'.

BTW for UK audiences the cinematographer is Peter Hutchens (not Hitchens.... that was really confusing me....).

I consider this so-called "documentary" to be nothing more than a "mockumentary" in that it is so biased towards the ridiculously named "12th Victim", namely Caril Ann Fugate, that it presents a wholly unbalanced view in attempting to persuade viewers that she was completely innocent of complicity in all the crimes of which she was convicted by a jury of her peers. Indeed, I would go so far as to suggest that the biased views put forward in this series are extremely dangerous in that they suggest that trials with convictions that took place so long ago where most, if not all, of the participants have passed away should be regarded as "unsafe" when "modern standards" are applied.