Under the Bridge

The show should have been predominantly about Reena. Sometimes it felt like she was an afterthought and that it was "the Rebecca Godfrey show". Like it was more about Rebecca's trauma than the Virks's. As a resident of Victoria for over 35 years, this crime has stuck with me, so my one criticism is that it didn't focus on Reens enough.

That said, the acting is superb and the portrayals of Warren and Kelly are spot on, Kelly in particular. There has never been any warmth behind the eyes of Ellard. She is a psychopath and any native Victorian knows this. Make no mistake, that woman is a monster and has manipulated the Canadian justice system as much as possible. Read up on it if you're not in the know.

At the end of the day it captures what a senseless tragedy this truly is and should be shown to adolescents to understand the depths of racism, bullying and the need for acceptance.

So I want to start this review out by saying- if you are really into true crime docs and podcasts and that is your main pull to this series, it may not be the show for you. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of that- but they don't take the often exploitative approach that the true crime genre often takes. For me, this has been an incredible series- from the screenplay, to casting, to acting and sequence of episodes. I am usually seeped in emotions throughout the show, ranging from anger to sadness to sympathy and empathy- bc this is a story about kids, some of them deeply failed by the adults in their life, others just not in a place they can appreciate it yet (like most teenagers). So I would not say watch this for a comfort show, but if you find comfort in connecting deeply through characters on screen, then maybe it's for you. I also really appreciate that they used age-appropriate actors for the kids. It feels more genuine and able to recognize, that these were all effing kids, which is mind blowing.

My complaints about the show ( quality of)

• First few episodes are a little too slow and boring. I thought the episode when Reenas parents meet was unnecessary, I get they wanted to paint a picture of her dad, but it didn't need an entire boring episode.

• some of the characters seemed 2 dimensional

• seemed like they were trying to paint the ppl that committed these crimes as more of a victim than the actual victim . I have a feeling it's because this is based on Rebecca G. Book.

• acting wasn't great in the beginning, but it does get better toward the end.

My complaints about the characters ( I won't hold this against the show because they are playing real people)

I absolutely couldn't stand this Rebecca character.

Her relationship with these young kids is "cringe" and I rarely use that word, but it's true. As someone that has worked with kids before, the way she acts around them like they are best friends makes me lose respect for her, even if her goal is to write a book. Again , but if this is how the story actually went down, then she clearly didn't care about Reena. Her goal was to write about how ppl can make mistakes and are still good ppl no matter what, just because she had her own issues. And if this show is accurate to what really happened, I really think she had a crush on this boy, apparently she described him as " boyish good looks, a hearthrob" in her book. She cared more about him than about Reena. If they went of her book then I have a hard time believing any of the acting that was portrayed for Warren, obviously her pov is warped.

I can't imagine how Reenas family feels. It's one thing to acknowledge that ppl make mistakes, but it's another to feel more sorry for the ppl that are not the actual victims.

I hadn't heard about this horrific incident before watching the series and I haven't read the book (nor will I if the series is anything to go off). The overall filming and performances in this series are really good and I think it's important to raise awareness of stories like this in memory of those lost, in this case Reena.

The pacing is okay - it dragged out for more episodes than necessary. My biggest annoyance with this series, is Rebecca. I've read that for a start she wasn't actually involved with the police, so this fictionalised aspect seems like an unnecessary perspective. Especially when her involvement isn't really there to serve justice for the victim but rather to stick up for and protect a perpetrator. Her character is extremely annoying and acts like a child. Why is she hanging out with kids, it's just strange and gross under the circumstances. Like I say, I haven't read the book so I don't know if she portrays herself in this way but she isn't alive now to ensure she doesn't look like a creep and in my opinion she looks like one in this series.

As a "who did it" series it is decent and worth a watch, but because it is based on something tragic that really happened I just think the inaccuracy seems disrespectful and it would have been better if it was more Reena focused than Rebecca focused.

Just two episodes in and I'm completely hooked. The acting is very good so far. Chloe Guidry is doing a great job. Can't stop watching her, at the same time hating her. Lily Gladstone gives an amazing performance as well. The story line is great. Sad that it is a true story of this young girls murder. Complex issues all around with each character. I'm definitely all in.

The cinematography is beautiful.

I have not read this book so pardon me if I insult anybody that has, and if this TV series by any chance deviates too far from the book. I hate when that happens. Like with "All the Light We Cannot See"