Murder Mountain

I thought this was going to be a murder mystery documentary but turned out to be more about marijuana in California. I burst out laughing when the growers complained about all the regulatory fees and studies they had to go through to be a legal business. That's the price you pay to live in a California pot growing utopia. As a business owner in California, I sure can commiserate.

I was drawn into this show right away during the opening narrative. I had just turned it on, on a whim, and was only prepared to give it a few minutes. I thought it was going to be a marijuana show, and I didn't think that beyond sensationalism that it would have substance. But I give it really high points because it was paced wonderfully. The weaving of the father's story, the history of the town and the marijuana farmers were all laid out so thoughtfully, that my interest was kept the entire time and I ended up binge watching it. I really hope they do a second season! I want to revisit the farmers, and maybe investigate another missing persons.

Murder Mountain is, ultimately, an in-depth look at a family trying to seek justice for a murdered loved one in an area that has been defined by its "lawlessness" for generations due to the large amount of illegal cannabis grows once found there. Humboldt County, California is known for its "Emerald Triangle", where most of the illegal cannabis in the U.S.A. used to be grown and has gone through intense upheaval due to the legalization of cannabis in California (everybody wants a piece of the monetary pie). Lurking behind the cannabis industry, legal or illegal, are the sobering statistics regarding the amount of missing people in the region, the number of unsolved murders, and other crime stats this documentary didn't delve into, and a Sheriff's Office that's more intent on the cannabis industry than anything else (they'll say it's because illegal grows are the root of all evil, however, taxation and money appear to have a lot more influence on their actions than the causation of crime). The documentary, also, exposes what happens when a way of life is obliterated in the name of progress.

I really enjoyed the subject matter and would have given this a 9 or 10 had it been only 3 episodes long. It looks like someone had a drone and spend a day or so flying over some beautiful scenery. Those scenes get boring after you see them 3, 4, 5... times. The same is true of the reenactments. How many times did we need to see the shooting reenactment? I lost count at 6. The numbers and finances were eye opening. A little more time spent there, even 5 minutes, would have helped explain the draw to this lifestyle. How are these people surviving? Do any of them pay property tax? Do they all get welfare/public assistance/social security checks?

And does anyone there know the past tense of see is "saw." ;-) The show is definitely worth watching but feel free to watch while doing something else.

Great crime documentary series. Ive been getting into my true crime tv series lately and really thought this one was a cut above. Its really interesting cause I would say the series has real historical value, its one of the 1st I have seen about the end of prohibition of cannabis in USA which is huge political turning point. Other things I thought gave a unique perspective was the USAs police and how they deal with crimes when its criminal on criminal. Can they really state that every person has the same rights of protection under law? I dont think that this is unique to the USA however and the whole industrialised world adopts this strategy. A crime isnt a crime, its who it is commited against more often than not that counts. On top of that its an interesting insight into the criminal underbelly of US cannabis growers, its a story deserved of a mini series. 30 min to 1hr just dont do a true crime justice and you really need a good few hrs to absorb in the characters and the settings