The Murders at Starved Rock

Outstanding from the word go. Bravo! I like how the filmmaker starts from the beginning from the time the murders happened all the way forward to it reconciliation.

This doc fell into the speculative true crime genre. While an interesting case, the documenter had motives and most of the interviews dealt with opinions not facts.

The documentary was like a stop at one of the Costco sample counters on a Saturday morning. After the sample is consumed you realize that didn't get enough of a sample to know whether you liked it enough to purchase, but sometimes you wished you had never tried it. After almost 3 hour sample I was left wondering "what was that?"

This is a compelling story but as with many documentaries the editing and production is poorly done. A shame really since the ingredients are all there for an awesome documentary.

All they had to do is keep it sequential and make sure the information presented doesn't conflict. They weren't able to do this so it was a jumbled mess and in the end you didn't know what to believe. That completely contradicts the point of a documentary.

I will say that David Raccuglia did seem genuine and passionate about the subject and pursuit of the truth but once again the direction and production missed the mark. I wish I didn't waste my time on this one. I am now interested though but will rely on other sources if I want more information.

The Murders at Starved Rock is the worst of the "personal history murder mystery genre". In this documentary, a lost former hair dresser attempts to investigate a 1960s murder in his hometown, that his father prosecuted the murderer for. The filmmaker combines endless hearsay and conspiracy theories to cast doubt on the case. Unfortunately, the story is not really about the murder, rather it is about a lost son trying to prove to his accomplished father that he is a man of substance. This is a story that could have been resolved in therapy. The director's hair cuts, facial hair, and eyewear are funniest and best part of this series.