"“The ultimate piece to define this tragic and unbelievable set of events...”"

Having been extensively covered in Oscar-nominated documentary trilogy Paradise Lost, the story of the West Memphis Three does seem like covered ground somewhat – yet Amy Berg’s chilling study of what is arguably the biggest failure of justice in modern history remains a crucial piece of cinema, as West of Memphis truly is the ultimate piece to define this tragic and unbelievable set of events.

The West Memphis Three – Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley and Jason Baldwin – were wrongly convicted of murdering three eight year old boys in Arkansas in 1993, the former given the death penalty. The teenagers were outcasts of society and believed to practise Satanic rituals, leading to their arrests and following imprisonment. However, as time progressed, it soon transpired that these three men were entirely innocent of the heinous crime, with new evidence brought to light.

Berg has unprecedented access to a plethora of key figures associated with this case – from judges to family members, to celebrities such as Peter Jackson and Eddie Vedder, who had partaken in the fervent campaign to free these innocent men, as we investigate and examine one of the most shocking criminal injustices of all time, and one that – almost 20 years on – still haunts all of those involved, as regardless of the conclusion, there is no such thing as a happy ending when three people have completed close to 60 years in prison for a crime they didn’t commit.

West of Memphis appears as more than just your everyday crime documentary, and more a piece of cinematic history. The media coverage and continuous, desperate campaigning for the West Memphis Three ‘s release has had a huge influence over this entire case and this film feels as though it is entirely part of that campaign. This is by no means an unbiased study, nor a subjective recollection of the case, but instead this is a film about justice (or the lack of) – epitomised in the fact that Jackson and Echols’ wife Lorri Davis make up part of the production team.

Berg must be commended for bringing such a complex and lengthy tale to the screen with such ease, managing to masterfully condense twenty years worth of material into two and a half hours, telling the story precisely and succinctly, not missing or dwelling on any points. Despite the length of this title, it remains gripping throughout, as you never once lose concentration. Had it needed to be an hour longer then so be it, I would have remain seated; compelled and unstirred. Berg presents the entire story chronologically, putting the audience in the same shoes as those who had lived through the debacle, as we similarly learn about it as we go along.

One criticism of the feature, however, is that Berg does appear somewhat contradictory in her portrayal of one of the victim’s step-father Terry Hobbs, a leading suspect in the case. West of Memphis highlights prejudice, slamming those who wrongly prejudged the West Memphis Three solely on their histories and interests. Hobbs does come across as being guilty, granted, but in the eyes of the law he isn’t, and Berg has a responsibility as a film maker to reflect that. However she really paints him out to be the villain, bringing up old evidence brought against him much in the same way original evidence was presented against Echols, Baldwin and Misskelley.

That aside, West of Memphis is an incredible tale told in equally as incredible fashion. There is no intrusive narration, this account is told by all of those involved as we feel we truly are getting to the bottom of this quite astounding case. There is of course the inevitable argument of whether this film is so good solely due to the depth and fascination of the content at hand, but it takes someone with good comic timing to tell a good joke, much in the same way it takes a talented film maker to tell this story well – and Berg has done just that.