It is an Infamous Case. Three Young Boys were Found Bound and Mutilated in a Stream. The Police, Prosecution, and the Community Zoomed in on Three Teenagers who were known Misfits, liked Heavy Metal Music, and were doing "Odd Things" and had a Fascination with the Occult.

Since the Murdered Kids showed Signs of Genital Trauma it was Assumed that this was a "Satanic" Ritual. All Three were Found Guilty and One got the Death Sentence.

This Film Focuses on the Weak Case, with No Physical Evidence and Witness Testimony that was Later Recanted to Shine some Light on a Probable Injustice, Suspect Police Procedures, and Perhaps Corruption, or at Least Prejudice in the Judicial System.

A Detailed and Zealous Investigation, the Film also Points a Finger at a Suspect, one of the Boys Stepfathers and goes to some Length to Dissect His Personality and Leans Toward His Possible Guilt.

There are by now, other Documentaries on the Case and a Hollywood Drama Based on a Non-Fiction Book, "Devil's Knot"(2013). This Documentary does, among other things, makes it Clear that the Judicial System, at Least in Arkansas, is Fatally Flawed and Indirectly Adds Weight to Death Penalty Abolitionists.

More Extensive Accounts are on the Internet for Anyone to find more details on this Sensational Story, the Documentaries, and the Individuals Involved on All Sides of this Case.

Just Search...The West Memphis Three and the Results will be Enormous.

This is just a Capsuled Review of this Film and is Short compared to the Gargantuan Amount of Information that is Available. For more, like the Names of the People Involved and the Minutia of the Case, Look Beyond this Review.

But be Advised, there are No Easy Answers and be Prepared for an Avalanche of Conflicting and Confusing Facts, Rumors, Innuendos, and Evidence.

This Documentary is Good a Place to Start or End any Inquiry.

'WEST OF MEMPHIS': Four and a Half Stars (Out of Five) A documentary film on the West Memphis Three case, in which three teenage outcasts (Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley) were arrested and charged with the murder of three 8-year old boys (Steven Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore),despite the lack of any conclusive evidence and apparent police and prosecutor misconduct. The boys spent eighteen years in prison and were released in August of 2011 as part of a deal reached with prosecutors due to new evidence. The film was directed and co-written (along with Billy McMillin) by Amy Berg (who also directed the 2006 documentary 'DELIVER US FROM EVIL', about the Catholic Church's cover up of a priest's sexual abuse, towards dozens of young boys, in the 70s). It was produced by Berg, Echols and Lori Davis as well as filmmakers Peter Jackson and his wife Fran Walsh. The movie is heartbreaking, frustrating and very disturbing but it's also inspiring in the way it shows how many people came forward to support justice and the freeing of these (presumably) wrongfully convicted men. The film tells the story of Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley (known as 'The West Memphis Three'),who were tried and convicted of the 1993 murders of three 8-year old boys in West Memphis, Arkansas in 1994. Echols was sentenced to death and the other two were sentenced to life imprisonment. The prosecution claimed that the three misfits killed the young boys as part of a satanic ritual but had no physical evidence to backup their claim. They were convicted on a theory, a forced confession of a mentally handicap teen (Misskelley) and the testimony of some shady witnesses (who later retracted their statements and admitted they were lying). Multiple HBO documentaries have been made on the subject which have motivated many to come forward in defense of the accused, including several celebrities (like Jackson, Walsh, Eddie Vedder, Henry Rollins and Johnny Depp to name a few). New forensic evidence allowed a deal to be reached with prosecutors where 'The Memphis Three' were released from prison under time served (18 years) due to Alford pleas (which allowed the three to maintain their innocence while admitting that the prosecution had enough evidence to convict them (a disgraceful way for the prosecution to avoid the embarrassment of a retrial and admitting they were wrong). The events of the entire ordeal are explained in detail through interviews with several of those involved. There's also a lot of evidence provided pointing to the most likely killer of the three young boys (Steven Branch's stepfather Terry Hobbs). The film is the classic tale of people in power taking advantage of the weak that can't defend themselves (three misfit teens in this case) and society exploiting someone for looking different and acting 'weird' (therefore he's 'creepy' and there must be something wrong with him). This sort of thing happens all the time, this is just one of those times it's been brought to the public's attention. Which is a good enough reason, on it's own, why no one (with any morals of any kind) should support the death penalty. The movie is infuriating, depressing and horrifying but it's also ultimately inspiring. It's also very relatable, to some, and shows how people that are different are often used and abused by society. That's why so many musicians and other celebrities felt for these young men and got involved in trying to help them. It's a movie that we can all learn a lot from. It still leaves a lot of questions and doesn't reach a completely satisfying conclusion (because one wasn't reached in real life) but the filmmakers did about as good a job bringing this story to light (in more detail, to the masses) as they possibly could. A must see!

In 1993 three young boys are found in a ditch, bound and mutilated. The local police, desperate for a conviction, make a connection between the marks on the dead children's bodies and Satanic rituals. Before long suspicion falls on three local teenagers, and in particular, Damien Echols, who with his died black hair, stands out from the rest of the community. At the 1993 trial, evidence of Echols interest with Satanic symbols surfaces, which, along with a confession from Jessie Misskelley, is enough to convict all three, and in Damien's case, bring a death sentence.

Over the following 15 years, doubt over the convictions grows, and fanned by several celebrities taking up the cause (Eddie Vedder, Jonny Depp among them),eventually force the Arkansas state to re-look at the case.

This documentary, produced by Peter Jackson, and directed by Amy Berg, is more than just a skillful re-telling of the story, from the original trial through to the eventual final judgement. Far from just reporting the defence campaign, the film-makers get involved in the campaign, helping organise DNA analysis, and setting-up a strong case against another member of the family for the killings.

The film gradually dismantles the original prosecution case, pointing out the lack of the teenagers DNA evidence at the crime scene, explaining that far from sexual mutilation, the dead children's injuries were actually post mortem, from snapper turtles, living in the creek. In the final third of the film, having done a convincing job of un-picking the evidence, the film makers pull out a final card. Using new DNA techniques, they test the single strand of hair found in the shoelaces used to tie up one of the victims. It's found to belong to one of the dead children's step father's, Terry Hobbs. The film then focuses on Hobbs, using interviews with his estranged wife and family to accuse him of being a child sex abuser, one with a violent temper, and jealous of the attention his step-son was receiving from his partner.

Eventually, in 2012, the District Attorney strikes a deal, that grants the convicted teenagers freedom, in return for their guilty plea, thereby avoiding a costly re-trial and compensation. It's an un-satisfactory legal outcome, but one that Misskelley, Echols and Baldwin understandably elect to take-up, and finally secure their freedom after 15 years of incarceration.

This is undoubtedly a very skillful documentary, which after a slow start, grows into a riveting story, with twists in the evidence and the legal process with up to the end. But it's a one sided affair, and the film-makers direct involvement with the campaign, muddies the waters, and asks the viewer to take their side.

While probable that there was mis-carriage of justice, or at the very least, that the convictions were "unsafe and unsatisfactory", the film and the case leave significant ambiguity behind. Some of the parents of the dead children still firmly believe that the real killers were indeed the ones that were found guilty back in 1993, and Terry Hobb's is left with the finger of suspicion hanging over him, never to be proved or dis-proved for the rest of his life.