Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills

Despite all the praise this documentary has received, I did not find it very moving at all. Granted, it was a horrible crime, and the footage of the three young victims' bodies was shocking and almost unwatchable. But most of this film serves only to expose the extreme incompetence of everyone involved in the case. With regard to the wrongly(?) accused boys -- never have I seen three innocent people put up such a weak, pathetic fight for their innocence. Most of the time, they stare doe-eyed and slack-jawed in front of the camera, seemingly uninterested in their own fates. Sure, these boys were only 16-17 years old and very scared, but they seem to have no intuition for survival whatsoever in this life-or-death situation. Any realistic grasp of the situation eludes these boys completely -- they behave almost as if they're playing a part in a movie. It is quite possible, and perhaps even probable, that they are indeed innocent, but they themselves do not seem to care, and so dear viewer, why should you? The overwhelming impression I get from these boys is that they lead very boring lives in a very stagnant town, and they know that this whole case is the most exciting thing that will ever happen to them. They seem interested not in the issue of their guilt or innocence, but rather in the surreal quality of their quasi-celebrity (in the end, Damien waxes romantic over the notion that his name will become famous in West Memphis as a synonym for "bogeyman", scaring generations of children to come). They are genuinely pleased with all of the attention they're receiving -- not that they have much to say, but they're just happy that someone is asking.

Truth may be stranger than fiction, but the American courtroom is stranger, still. For the two hours during which I've watched this film I've gained a valuable insight into the nature of the witch trials. I feel powerless, as there is not much I can do to help these kids. But perhaps there is a lesson in it for us, and everyone who has seen the film should have taken some mental notes. First -- never name youself or your children 'Damien' -- especially if you live in the Bible Belt. And, as a general survival strategy, do not be the black sheep of the local community. There may come the time when your eccentric behavior alone will be used against you to sentence you to death.

I remember watching this documentary when it appeared on HBO and being completly disgusted. This was a witch hunt. The trial of these boys was based more on their look and taste in music more than actual hard evidence. I grew up around this area and I know exactly what it's like to be a noncormist..you're automatically accused of being a satanist and associated with murders just because you look and think a certain way. Now I can't honestly sit here and say that these boys didn't do it..because I don't know..it's possible..and my heart tells me they didn't..but ya know i'd look like an ass if the evidence came up that they did. What disgusted me was the trial..and the assassination of the boys . There was no real concrete facts..just their lifestyle of music and fashion. The second one focused more on the father of the murdered children..all evidence pointed at him and away from the boys..just my opinion. This is a disturbing look at corrupted justice in the Bible belt.

Absolutely shocking and riveting from beginning to end. A brutal murder of three young boys leads to the wrongful conviction of three teens who were fingered for the crime because the police and townspeople found them "weird." Two of the teens are currently (2004) serving life sentences, and one is sitting on death row! This documentary brilliantly unfolds the story of the tragedy in West Memphis through interviews with the murdered boys' families, the accused and convicted teens, and footage of the court trials. The directors remain unbiased and let the audience decide for themselves "who did it," but there's no disputing that the police investigation was a travesty and that the West Memphis Three did not get fair trials--were found guilty before even taking the stand. Also check out the sequel: "Paradise Lost: Revelations." Be warned, though--both documentaries will make you want to scream with the injustice of it all, and rightfully concern you that despite an absence of any physical evidence linking three young men to a crime, and despite mounds of evidence indicating that the young men are innocent, the desire by influential individuals to convict won out over justice.

This film left me with a bad taste in my mouth. Not that it was gruesome -- it is, but I've done research involving reading coroner reports, so gruesome I can cope with. It was the unanswered questions and the unasked questions.

It seems so utterly implausible that a jury could have convicted any of the suspects that I wonder what the filmmakers did not show us. Specifically, I wonder about the fiber evidence, which was the only real physical evidence at all.

I could only rate this documentary a 7 out of 10 because of the unasked questions and the evidence we were not shown. I would like to have come away from watching Paradise Lost with a clearer understanding of what those jurors heard and saw that led them to their verdicts. Mind you, I don't think those boys did it -- I think that even fiber evidence could have been too flimsy to convict them. But I wish I had been left convinced.