Elizabeth Smart: Autobiography

Wow, this was very compelling. I'm old enough to have been completely immersed in this horror story when it happened, shocked when she was found alive (she really is the poster child of HOPE for families with missing loved ones) and happy that she seemed happy in later years. This documentary gifted me with knowing how well her life has turned out. She is one amazing young woman, one of a kind. The takeaway for me was really about the importance of strong family values. I don't think Elizabeth would have survived and thrived after her ordeal had she not come from such a loving close knit family unit. It doesn't have to be centered around faith or religion, although those kind of values can certainly lead to a stronger family life. And I'm not even religious. IMHO the fact that she came from such a loving family played a role in the happy outcome of this story and cannot be ignored. I'm so glad she still believes in fairy tale endings...

Elizabeth Smart: Autobiography is, as the name implies, Elizabeth Smart's story told in her own words. Smart was abducted as a young teen, held captive by a deranged couple, brainwashed, and repeatedly raped for almost a year before she was able to escape. The film also explores the pain and suffering experienced by her family as they faced the initial shock and terror of a missing child, their ordeal with the police, and the highs and lows they experienced trying to find Elizabeth.

I'm not sure "entertaining" is the right word to use, but Elizabeth Smart: Autobiography is certainly a compelling piece of television. Elizabeth Smart's story is one of courage, bravery, and an unending faith. It's the story of a girl who did whatever she had to deal with her situation and survive. Elizabeth Smart iis amazingly calm as she recounts her ordeal. The specifics she details are heartbreaking. I'm amazed at Smart's poise as the horrors she faced unfold. What an amazing woman.

The only reason I haven't rated this a 10/10 was that I wanted more from Smart and less from the family. While their ordeal was no doubt gut-wrenching, their story isn't as "interesting" as Elizabeth's. Less family and more Elizabeth Smart would have made this thing even better. Still, it's a minor quibble with what is overall a wonderful documentary.

After watching this, I was interested to learn more about Elizabeth Smart's story. I'm shocked to read numerous posts on the internet that doubt her and the truth behind her ordeal. Most question why she didn't try to escape and why it took her so long to admit she was Elizabeth Smart when questioned by the police. I think she does an excellent job of addressing this in the film. If you've never been in her situation, don't judge. You have no idea what she was going through. Her fear was real and her reluctance to do or say something is completely understandable. These doubters infuriate me.

This is billed as an "autobiography", but it's more of a rehashing of the case with comments from Ms. Smart interspersed. After an hour & a half the viewer doesn't come away with the depth of knowledge of the individual that one would expect from an "autobiography". In fact, this plays much more like an episode of any of several true crime shows. Not that there's anything wrong with that-- just don't try to sell it as an autobiography.

Since the producers chose to follow the true crime formula they could have easily focused on other lesser known aspects of this story in order to cast new light on a fairly well known event, but they blew those opportunities in spades. For example, using the same amount of screen time to highlight the bias, preconceptions, and outright incompetence of law enforcement investigating this case would have made for a much more compelling documentary. After all, this family was not only victimized by a pair of lunatics, they were also victimized by myopic police unable to think beyond the manual and their own limited experiences. The real story buried within is just how little the police contributed to the eventual resolution of this crime.

This presentation may be of interest to viewers with a strong curiosity about this particular case-- just don't expect to learn much (if anything) new. But if you're tuning in to learn how Ms. Smart coped with her ordeal during and after the fact, don't expect to learn much. If you're looking for an interesting true crime story you'll find better told stories elsewhere, so give this one a miss unless you've never heard the story before, because there's virtually no new ground broken here.