“thank you judge. and may you rot in hell! sending a raped woman to death! and you all… you’re a bunch of scum that’s what you are!”
i have literally so many movies to review, and i kinda just completely forgot to review this (i watched it at the end of november) but i’m gonna try and get on top of it all more. this had been a movie i’d wanted to see for a long time, mainly due to a memory i had of one scene where i was just infatuated by the story: but my parents didn’t let me watch it (i was like 5 at the time) but ever since then i was just fully intrigued in not only this movie, but also the entire case of aileen wurnous: discussing if she was pure evil, or just misunderstood. true crime is something i adore, because it’s so realistically gritty but it also allows you to put yourself in someone else’s shoes with a totally different situation or mental state. after a lot research, and obviously watching this movie i’ve came to the conclusion that she really didn’t deserve the death penalty!! i think the main reason this stands out in comparison to other true crime stories, is because i think the story telling is two dimensional, and actually expresses empathetic towards aileen. it doesn’t paint her as this cold blooded murderer (because she wasn’t that whatsoever) instead humanising her, showing her struggle with child neglect, and then poverty (which led to prostitution to allow her to make a living) and also her dynamic with a woman which eventually becomes romantic. it goes over the events that make her into what she becomes (such as the rape scene, which i thought was really well done: due to it genuinely being painful to watch, and lacks any actual sexual appeal, which other movies fall into) it doesn’t particularly excuse the murders, but it shows the reason why she commits them. i loved how character driven this entire story was, instead of the clichéd investigation style a lot of crime stories fall into, it shows aileen’s mental decent as she murders more and more men: while also having a complex relationship with her lover shelby, all at once. through the story of aileen, and her eventual death penalty - it highlights how the system completely failed her, instead of giving her the support she clearly needed she was subjected to hatred her entire lifetime. this entire movie is also just dripping with realism, it’s shot like a documentary and feels super low-budget, also using period appropriate music, which immersed me into this world but also it’s grittiness lacked any glamorisation which is my biggest pet peeve in real life events. to finish my review off, the actress of aileen was easily the movies highlight. her portrayal contained so much depth, she shows aileen as a nuanced, brutal and yet vulnerable character all at once, and she feels perfectly cast for the role.
“thank you judge. and may you rot in hell! sending a raped woman to death! and you all… you’re a bunch of scum that’s what you are!”
i have literally so many movies to review, and i kinda just completely forgot to review this (i watched it at the end of november) but i’m gonna try and get on top of it all more. this had been a movie i’d wanted to see for a long time, mainly due to a memory i had of one scene where i was just infatuated by the story: but my parents didn’t let me watch it (i was like 5 at the time) but ever since then i was just fully intrigued in not only this movie, but also the entire case of aileen wurnous: discussing if she was pure evil, or just misunderstood. true crime is something i adore, because it’s so realistically gritty but it also allows you to put yourself in someone else’s shoes with a totally different situation or mental state. after a lot research, and obviously watching this movie i’ve came to the conclusion that she really didn’t deserve the death penalty!! i think the main reason this stands out in comparison to other true crime stories, is because i think the story telling is two dimensional, and actually expresses empathetic towards aileen. it doesn’t paint her as this cold blooded murderer (because she wasn’t that whatsoever) instead humanising her, showing her struggle with child neglect, and then poverty (which led to prostitution to allow her to make a living) and also her dynamic with a woman which eventually becomes romantic. it goes over the events that make her into what she becomes (such as the rape scene, which i thought was really well done: due to it genuinely being painful to watch, and lacks any actual sexual appeal, which other movies fall into) it doesn’t particularly excuse the murders, but it shows the reason why she commits them. i loved how character driven this entire story was, instead of the clichéd investigation style a lot of crime stories fall into, it shows aileen’s mental decent as she murders more and more men: while also having a complex relationship with her lover shelby, all at once. through the story of aileen, and her eventual death penalty - it highlights how the system completely failed her, instead of giving her the support she clearly needed she was subjected to hatred her entire lifetime. this entire movie is also just dripping with realism, it’s shot like a documentary and feels super low-budget, also using period appropriate music, which immersed me into this world but also it’s grittiness lacked any glamorisation which is my biggest pet peeve in real life events. to finish my review off, the actress of aileen was easily the movies highlight. her portrayal contained so much depth, she shows aileen as a nuanced, brutal and yet vulnerable character all at once, and she feels perfectly cast for the role.
