Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father

[eternity]

The director, Kurt Kuenne, pretty much schooled a hater on the IMDB boards.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1152758/board/nest/123051933?d=123916651&p=1#123916651

Has anyone else seen this? Pretty fantastic documentary.

[number8]

I made a thread urging people to see it in the Upcoming section and got zero replies. :sad:

[Mysterious Dude]

I saw it. A devastating story.

[Amnesiac]

If that's really the director, then that's pretty cool. If that's just a zealous fan posing as the director, then that's... well, then that's what it is.

And yeah, I've heard that this movie is pretty devastating.

[ledfloyd]

i kinda want to see it and kinda don't. i live really close to where the original murder took place and this story was all over the news while it was happening. it was devastating enough to hear it that way. i'm not sure it's something i need to have brought out in greater relief.

[bac0n]

I'm afraid of the movie. Just reading the description of the project on the website was enough to make me want to cry.

[monolith94]

Yeah. Just knowing the facts of what happened… ugh, it seems like a hard movie to bring oneself to watch.

[Sycophant]

Okay, I actually had a pretty severe negative reaction to just title. But now that I've actually looked into the project and have some idea of what it's about, I'm super interested.

[Mysterious Dude]

Okay, I actually had a pretty severe negative reaction to just title.Why?

[Sycophant]

Why?
I have a pretty strong aversion to father-son bonding stories. The title struck me as one.

[Raiders]

Hmmm... powerful stuff, and I like the frantic energy of Kuenne's editing rhythm accompanied by the lingering moments of unabashed emotion. The instances where Andrew's father lets his mouth run wild with contempt are simply some of the most haunting moments I have ever witnessed, on screen or in real life. I do have to question Kuenne's motive of playing the second tragedy for ultimate dramatics by revealing what he definitely knew at the time of his editing the movie together. But, I suppose it is understandable when looking at the way in which Kuenne began the project and he is ultimately just following through. This structure ultimately allows the audience to experience the situation in the same manner the people close to Andrew did.

[chrisnu]

Oh my God. :cry:

Stronger people than I.

[D_Davis]

I have a pretty strong aversion to father-son bonding stories. The title struck me as one.

Does a father-son bonding theme negatively impact any film for you?

[balmakboor]

I have a pretty strong aversion to father-son bonding stories. The title struck me as one.

I had the exact same reaction. The title sounded like something all sugary and father/son bondy and I had no interest in even looking it up. Now I can't wait to see it.

[Ezee E]

I might even consider this the best movie of the year.

[Derek]

I might even consider this the best movie of the year.

It is the best extended Dateline episode ever made. I mean look, the story is incredibly sad, tragic and enraging, but the film itself feels more like a tv special than a film. I still think it's good and definitely worth seeing, but at what point do you account for the film itself rather than the innately emotional content of the true story. I'm not arguing that people shouldn't love it or anything, but I find it troublesome when words like masterpiece are thrown around it. Is any documentary that happens capture a unique and emotionally potent topic and elicit an emotional response from the viewer a masterpiece? Is there even a need to separate content and form is cases like this? Just throwing that out there.

[Ezee E]

It is the best extended Dateline episode ever made. I mean look, the story is incredibly sad, tragic and enraging, but the film itself feels more like a tv special than a film. I still think it's good and definitely worth seeing, but at what point do you account for the film itself rather than the innately emotional content of the true story. I'm not arguing that people shouldn't love it or anything, but I find it troublesome when words like masterpiece are thrown around it. Is any documentary that happens capture a unique and emotionally potent topic and elicit an emotional response from the viewer a masterpiece? Is there even a need to separate content and form is cases like this? Just throwing that out there.
But it's definitely not a Dateline episode. The editing, use of voiceover, music, and the way the story is told is incredibly different than any Dateline show.

As far as the happenstance that it has a potent topic. I don't really understand. To me, that's like saying, "Such and such biopic just happens to be good because of what happened to that person in real life." Go more into that please.

[soitgoes...]

I think the editing in this is perhaps the best all year. I also thought the way Kuenne went about presenting the film was brilliant. Yes the subject matter pulled the old heart strings, but that's because the film itself was incredibly honest, personal. I have watched Dateline or any other news shows of its ilk, and never have I been touched the way I was while watching this film.

[number8]

Yeah, it's really unfair to say that this looks like TV work. The editing is very creative and compelling, and the very reason why the subject feels very potent and heartfelt is because of the director skillfully constructing a specific non-linear narrative that gets the audience involved in the family's emotional journey. Can you really say the film presents only facts and interviews and nothing more?