Above Suspicion

First off the acting in this film is pretty damn good. Clarke really tricks you into believing she's from the hollers of east Kentucky. As a Kentuckian myself I give her a 10/10. It just drags in the middle to a speed that a great cast and character drama just can't pull it out of. I think the filmmakers tried to stay faithful to the actual events, which is respectable to the ones involved, but ultimately it could be told in 30 minutes. Would watch again in a few years for maybe a better perspective on a slow night. Go into it just to watch Clarke and Knoxville play hillbilly pill heads and you shouldn't be disappointed.

Let's get the pun out of the way - this film is not above suspicion: small(relatively) budget, no huge action sequences, no special fx, no CGI dragons. OK, that's the pun out of the way. In my hazy recollection, this type of thriller was popular in the 90's. The fact that this is a true story is frightening and it adds to the film's impact. Emilia Clarke is really good. I've only seen her in Solo, Last Christmas, and Terminator Genisys. Sorry, haven't seen GoT yet. She's researched her character disturbingly well. Phillip Noyce is a master wizard who chooses the right lenses and framing. He only amplifies the natural lighting. He understands how to pace a story. He knows the best ways to make a smaller film seem 'cinematic'. The supporting cast are very good and cover a 'delightful' range of characters. Johnny Knoxville won't be nominated for an Oscar but he has an undeniable screen presence. It's not a cinema classic, but there's plenty good in this modest production. IF you can keep your expectations in check, you'll be rewarded.

Away from the story of the whole movie, Emilia Clarke's performance was great, her accent was amazing and made me feel she wasn't British and she had born in Kentucky.

I haven't finished to watch it but there is something consistent in the story that won't change even at the end, yes you got the little southern American town, prefabricated trailer park houses, the bit up trucks, parties with lowlife red neck cocaine sniffer and the obligatory kids you feel bad about because of "such parents", the good looking smart girl who asks herself "why was I born in such a hell hole I am beautiful and smart I deserve everything or at least more", they all work, but, that trailer really should be much messier and dirtier, considering there are 4 adults and 2 kids living in there, parties with dozens of people and no one that ever cleans it , is quite a big trailer but still, so it's a bit to polished and put up, Emilia does a good job but those beautiful straight white teeth when she smiles are a bit like that trailer, wants to sell you something is not there,

Much of the true history of the story was changed, which I do not understand because the true story is fascinating. What the book does very well that the movie does not is to make Pikeville and its cast of characters come to life. The setting does not play a great part in the movie, though. And the Kentucky accents and colloquialisms are not great, to be sure.

Emilia Clarke did a very good job with the material she was given, but the script does not quite capture the true Susan Smith very well. Nevertheless, Clarke worked superbly with the material given to bring the troubled, tragic Susan Smith to life. Johnny Knoxville is surprisingly good in his role as Cash. Other important characters, most notably FBI agent Singer, were barely relevant in the movie. Jack Huston was passable as Mark Putnam, and the script and acting actually did a good job presenting Mark's side of the story at the end. However, for much of the movie, Putnam's character is dull, lacking personality. That is more the script's fault than it is Huston's.

All in all, this is a movie worth watching if you're familiar with the story, but it's far from perfect.