A Matter of Justice

This TV two-parter is actually very well made. The casting is really good. I find no real fault with the performances. I've been a fan of Sheen since The Subject Was Roses, and Duke has been a TV staple for a reason...she's more than a fine actor. Even the music adds a nice touch, as do the efforts of all others who worked behind the scenes.

You'll find some great reviews on IMDb, so I won't add much more. I will say, however, that it's important to remember that all those TV movies allegedly based on a true story so popular in the 80s and 90s did not adhere to the facts 100%. It's television, for God's sake; and television, my friends is NOT reality.

This led me to do some internet research about the case. What's kind of a tell-tale sign of the perpetrator's true character is what transpired after her release from prison. Her legal troubles did not end with her initial convictions of conspiracy to commit murder and murder in the second degree. Several other charges were levied against her afterwards unrelated to the murder case. The woman was obviously troubled and damaged.

It's my hope that the surviving daughter of the murder victim is living a healthy, happy life with a family that she can call her own.

Worth a watch if you're into these kinds of TV crime dramas that are "based on a true story".

I just finished watching this movie on Lifetime. I must have seen it 15 or 20 times, but it is truly one of those movies that seems to get better each time. Patty Duke, and the program itself, were not only robbed of Emmys, but also of nominations. It is an ongoing injustice with the TV Academy. A miracle of some sorts was made with this movie. It was produced in the middle of the true crime tv-movie phase, where one movie looked like another, but this one stands apart on its own.

If you are a fan of Ms. Duke's or of real gutsy characters, check this one out!

This movie made me very sad because it was a true story. Patty Duke's acting in this film is absolutely excellent and at times gave me a lump in my throat, what an incredibly strong character, to have lost her only child to murder then have to fight for her son's widow to be brought to justice and to seek custody of her grand-daughter, what an incredibly strong woman. Dusty was very lucky to have such a sweet, loving, caring husband and to have him murdered was an evil act and I am glad she got what was coming to her. At the end of the film where Dusty is sentenced and when Mary and Jack are alone in the courtroom, I had tears in my eyes when Mary turned to Jack and said : "I wish Chris was here, I want to hold him in my arms and say you can rest now Mum and Dad have taken care of everything", poor Mary and Jack losing that precious boy, but at least they have little Christine to help them go on and at least they got the justice they needed, this was an excellent film with great acting especially from Patty Duke.

A matter of Justice is an excellent movie featuring outstanding performances by Patty Duke, Martin Sheen, and Charles S Dutton. The true tragic events the story centers around were dramatized to make the movie a little more interesting, instead of making up scenes the director should have spent time on facts. The glaring mistakes to me are the military prison which could have been better represented, and the NIS scene. She calls it Naval Intelligence Service, actually it was called Naval Investigative Service, until 1996 when it became NCIS. Overall the movie contains excellent performances by the leading and supporting actors, Hollywood could spend a little time working on a remake to fix small mistakes.

Self defense my foot. There is no way you can call it self defense when someone is stabbed 26 times. This is a sad, yet increasingly typical situation in the military. Chris Brown is not the only troop to be murdered by his spouse, who married him because she was looking for a meal ticket. Great acting, suspense filled story. However, I wish this was a story that never had to be told, but unfortunately, it happens again and again and again. There are countless stories like this out there. Not all of them have ended in murder, but many of them have ended in bitter child custody battles, and some of them have ended in murder. The military life is hard enough as it is without all these women out there looking for meal tickets.