This movie should be in the dictionary under the definition of 'in medias res'. There's very little set-up before you are thrown into what is absolutely the most bonkers story I've heard in all my years of listening to true crime--and, incredibly, most of it was caught on film, in decent quality even! Berry and his team did an excellent job putting together film and audio directly from the event, spliced with interviews with people who were there as the whole impossible story rolled out. Very slickly produced, well-shot, good pacing, and despite the fact that this is literally a film about a man with a sawed-off shotgun wired to the back of another man's head, this documentary does NOT veer into the sensationalist or over-hyped territory that would have put it firmly into a lower class of film. My only critique is that I would have loved to hear more analysis in the film of how this incredible case changed legal precedent around the 'insanity' defence.
To get your full ten-star experience, I recommend hitting up the film's website after -- there's all kinds of bonus content there that really helps contextualize the event, as well as answers some questions I still had at the end. There's even a trivia section. Truly, a documentary after this true crime nerd's heart.
