O.J. Speaks: The Hidden Tapes

O.J. Speaks: The Hidden Tapes (2015)

*** (out of 4)

This documentary basically releases and shows people the deposition tapes that O.J. Simpson gave during the Civil trial after Fred Goldman decided to sue him for the wrongful death of his son and Nicole Brown Simpson. There's no audio or video footage from the actual Civil trial so these deposition tapes are the only way to hear from O.J. himself as all of this is going on. Fred Goldman, Daniel Petrocelli and others involved with the trial are interviewed as they discuss the various steps in the Civil trial.

If you're interesting in the O.J. Simpson trial then obviously you're going to want to watch this, although I think the film would have bee much more interesting had they had someone from Simpson's side speaking up. There's no secret that this documentary wants everyone to know that Simpson did the crime and they want to embarrass him here. I just think hearing from the other side and seeing what they have to say would have made for a much fuller film. Still, the deposition tapes are rather interesting and especially getting to see and hear from Simpson.

This isn't a documentary! So lets, first, get that out of the way. This is a video pieced together with the use of manipulative editing and coercive commentary that is meant to make O.J Simpson look guilty and just remind us all, that the Goldman family and their lawyer and others who believe that O.J is guilty, believe that hes an over all bad guy. I believe that this particular "documentary" or better to be described as propaganda video, is response to the 2012 documentary "My Brother The Serial Killer" a far better documentary, a really compelling watch and best of all, the absolute truth. In that 2012 documentary, the killer revealed as Glen Rogers, who has confessed to the murders. That documentary makes a far more compelling case with the truth as a source and a film maker who presented it extraordinarily well. If you are interested in the truth, then id watch the aforementioned film. This though? this is horrible and its really very sad because the Goldman's are hurting over their son, and the only way to express their rage is to fixate on who they believe did it and to make him pay for their haunting anguish. It truly is a tragedy and this video really more than anything, expresses how hurt the Goldman's are to this very day, especially Fred Goldman, the father.I feel for the Goldman's, I unfortunately know that loss as well, so I understand this sort of defamation, you lose someone and you get bottled up with hate and anger and I can hope that one day they find a way to have a measure of peace. As for this documentary, its a waste of time, and insult to the intelligence and perpetrated piece of fraud that shouldn't be acknowledged, the fact that it was presented on the channel A&E, is a black eye to the network and a major disgrace and to think, I like some of their shows! I liked "Breaking Bad" I'm gonna still watch "The Walking Dead" but your network should be ashamed of itself airing garbage like this, you should of let them sell it to FOX, that's where this sort of crap belong.

This documentary is complementary to "The Unseen Deposition Of O.J. Simpson"; somewhat longer it is seen largely through the eyes of Daniel Petrocelli while the first is seen through those of Ron Goldman, although Petrocelli appears in the shorter film while Goldman also takes up a good chunk of this one.

Petrocelli is a corporate lawyer, and when he was approached to take the civil case against Simpson, he had serious misgivings. The man who told him he "must" take it was clothing manufacturer Paul Marciano, a client of his. As soon as he met Ron Goldman, he knew it was the right thing to do.

We see herein parts of Simpson's lengthy deposition, hear an exposition of the deposition and trial strategy, and hear also from various people including A.C. Cowlings, the man behind the wheel during that ridiculous slow speed car "chase" in which Simpson held a gun to his own head, but sadly did not pull the trigger.

Perhaps the most surprising thing revealed here en passant is that there were demonstrators both for and against outside the courthouse, and some of those rooting for Simpson were white. What was that about America being polarised on racial grounds? At any rate, only cranks and totally ignorant people still believe Simpson to be innocent, as he languishes behind bars after pushing his luck too far.