I Am Vanessa Guillen

This film had me in tears 5 min in and over and over again. One family, 1st generation really shows what it means to love, protect and care for each other against all odds.

The story deals with a lot of issues and it deals with them well, but this is about family and the Latino community uniting above all else. It made me proud. It made me sad. It made me want to make this country better just like the family in the film does.

This is also about a social movement that blew up online and if you go on twitter, this film is getting to people. I thought I was just feeling extra emotional but this film has people balling their eyes out.

It's also fast moving. Was never bored. Just overwhelmed with emotion.

This is an emotional and powerful film that covers a lot of ground. The story is well structured, fast paced and really dives into some complicated subject matter about the military chain of command, military legal system and getting legislation passed.

The film gives you just the right amount of information about the legal framing to follow the story, but leads with the personal stories of the subjects of the film, which are the heroes.

The focus is on a family that makes a really incredible choice - they take on the US military in order to get justice for their sister.

One of the most important films. Really worth the watch.

What's particularly remarkable about this true-crime documentary is how it focuses more on the judicial aftermath of Vanessa's killing than the details of the crime itself. Here's a story where even the family of the deceased victim know very little about the whys, primarily due to its occurrence at Fort Hood, a US Army post, and the fact that military law is vastly different from civilian law. It is pretty easy to connect with the Guillens and the people who support them, and that isn't just because they're immigrants. It could be one of the reasons for sure, but there's still a lot to appreciate here - be it the plight of the younger sisters (especially Lupe, who's like a shining beacon of hope) or the mother who lost her daughter at such a young age, the lawyer Natalie Khawam who joins them in their fight for justice, and the folks who came out to support them in passing the bill for independent prosection of sexual assault cases in the military.

While the family's effort pays off to some extent (and it's depicted as a victory moment), the concerned folks remark that it is just a first step in many. Credit should go to the makers for not sensationalizing the details of the crime, and instead, pulling us into this emotional journey of a family that's fighting a relatively big fight. So, if you're looking for an investigative, details-driven true-crime piece, this might not entirely hold your interest. It definitely did hold mine (with slight pacing issues), as the story progressively moved into a more insightful, affecting space.

This doc shook me to the core. It was emotional and offers quite a refreshing point of view.

If you're expecting a traditional crime doc, then maybe not your cup of tea. If you are open to watching something more interesting then the same old formula of gore and exploitation, this breaks the mold.

This film gave me some hope, not only about democracy but humankind as well. A beautiful testament to a young woman, the legacy her family has built in her honor.

This felt intimate, thoughtfully crafted, sensitive and fair. The filmmakers handled this delicate story with gentle care and as a viewer, appreciated that. Imagine this was gut-wrenching to make.

I simply can't get this film out of my mind.

I didn't know what to expect when I decided to watch it. I vaguely remember the case several years back and initially thought it was gonna be a murder mystery. But it wasn't.

It took forever just to get to the death of Vanessa. Like 1/3 of the film. Then it became about military reform and I have no idea why. Because that story went nowhere.

I am sure there was a story in there somewhere, but they totally missed it.

The suspects came and went in like 2 minutes. It was all like throw-away tidbits, rather than the focus of the film, which was a shame.

It was basically 90 minutes of hearing grief from the family. But is that a movie? I say no. I sympathize with their loss and feel terrible for them, but in movies, even documentaries, there needs to be a story and not just emotional testimonials of how sad they are.

Like with most Netflix documentaries, they are way too long and add way too much fluff.

There were a lot of allegations of sexual assault, but they never connected that to the murder. Just seemed like a sideshow.

It had very little to do with Vanessa and much more about her little sister becoming an activist and good for her, but again, was that the movie they needed to make?

The filmmakers really had no focus on anything or made no connection to anything.

I don't like documentaries that rely on a bunch of speculation. "it could have happened" or "it likely did happen." That is not the basis for a whole film.

If you want to watch compelling documentaries go watch "Don't F with Cats" or "Making a Murderer." This was a mess.