The men known as the West Memphis Three were convicted as teenagers in 1994 of the heinous murders of three little boys in West Memphis, Arkansas. Jason Baldwin, who’s interviewed here, was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Jessie Misskelley, Jr., received a sentence of life imprisonment plus two 20-year sentences, and the so-called ringleader, Damien Echols, was given the death penalty.
During the trial the prosecution declared that the children were slain as part of a Satanic ritual. A number of documentaries have been based on the case, and celebrities, filmmakers, and musicians have spoken out in the belief that they are innocent. Finally, in 2010, the trio were released after striking an unusual legal deal.
And now, there’s a Hollywood movie, Devil's Knot (review). It’s directed by Atom Egoyan and stars Academy Award winners Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon.
Dread Central: One wonders… as someone who lived the story,...
Jessie Misskelley, Jr., received a sentence of life imprisonment plus two 20-year sentences, and the so-called ringleader, Damien Echols, was given the death penalty.
During the trial the prosecution declared that the children were slain as part of a Satanic ritual. A number of documentaries have been based on the case, and celebrities, filmmakers, and musicians have spoken out in the belief that they are innocent. Finally, in 2010, the trio were released after striking an unusual legal deal.
And now, there’s a Hollywood movie, Devil's Knot (review). It’s directed by Atom Egoyan and stars Academy Award winners Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon.
Dread Central: One wonders… as someone who lived the story,...
- 5/5/2014
- by Staci Layne Wilson
- DreadCentral.com
Ioncinema.com’s Ioncinephile of the Month feature focuses on an emerging filmmaker from the world of cinema. This month’s featured docu filmmaker needs little introduction – her debut (2006) Deliver Us from Evil was nominated for Best Documentary Oscar and her sophomore film, the Sundance and Tiff selected doc West of Memphis (four star review here) was released via Sony Pictures Classics on December 25th in NY and Los Angeles). Before Amy Berg pursues further docu projects (Untitled Women’s Boxing Documentary and This Is America) and moves into narrative debut (Every Secret Thing or Mystery White Boy) we found out more how she landed and more importantly, how she went about the project. Amy didn’t submit her top ten, but here’s a sampling of the films that are among her first film loves.
Eric Lavallee: During your childhood… what films were important to you?
Amy Berg:...
Eric Lavallee: During your childhood… what films were important to you?
Amy Berg:...
- 12/28/2012
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
West of Memphis, a powerful new Peter Jackson documentary, charts the ongoing fight for justice for three men wrongly convicted as child killers
After his release from prison, Damien Echols found the simplest things hardest. "For 18 years I hadn't walked without chains," he says, "so when I came out I would trip over my feet. It took time just to stop falling over the kerb." He is calling from New York, but still speaks with the accent of the American south – the place where until last year he spent his whole life, half of it jailed as a child killer.
The facts are a tangle of names and dates. On 6 May 1993, the naked, mutilated bodies of three eight-year-old boys – Stevie Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers – were found in a water-filled ditch in the Bible belt town of West Memphis, Arkansas. By the following March, three local teenagers had been convicted of the crimes – Echols,...
After his release from prison, Damien Echols found the simplest things hardest. "For 18 years I hadn't walked without chains," he says, "so when I came out I would trip over my feet. It took time just to stop falling over the kerb." He is calling from New York, but still speaks with the accent of the American south – the place where until last year he spent his whole life, half of it jailed as a child killer.
The facts are a tangle of names and dates. On 6 May 1993, the naked, mutilated bodies of three eight-year-old boys – Stevie Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers – were found in a water-filled ditch in the Bible belt town of West Memphis, Arkansas. By the following March, three local teenagers had been convicted of the crimes – Echols,...
- 12/21/2012
- by Danny Leigh
- The Guardian - Film News
An Arkansas judge has ruled on reopening the case of the released West Memphis Three. New evidence has been unearthed by investigators hired by producers Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh during the filming of Amy Berg's Sundance doc "West of Memphis," which Sony Pictures Classics will open in New York and L.A. on December 25. Crittenden County Circuit Court Judge Victor L. Hill ruled this week that state prosecutor Scott Ellington’s ongoing investigation should continue. According to the decision by Judge Hill, "The prosecutor has the right and obligation to ascertain whether a miscarriage of justice might have occurred…That is his prerogative and he might even be said to derelict in that duty if he failed to conduct such an investigation." (My Q & A with Berg is below.) The hearing was in response to a suit seeking access to police evidence in the West Memphis Three murder...
- 11/13/2012
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
In the wake of a new documentary film about the "West Memphis Three," authorities in Arkansas are taking another look at the 19-year-old murders of three young boy scouts.
The revelation was made at a Wednesday hearing on a suit filed by Pam Hicks and John Mark Byers, two of the parents of the victims who are seeking access to police evidence in the case. During the court proceeding, Arkansas officials revealed there is an "ongoing investigation" into new affidavits made as a result of the documentary.
The film, "West of Memphis," examines the police investigation into the 1993 murders of three 8-year-old boys, Christopher Byers, Steven Branch and Michael Moore, in West Memphis. It also chronicles the arrest and ultimate release of Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley Jr. and Jason Baldwin -– the trio dubbed the "West Memphis Three."
The new affidavits, which are featured in the documentary film, contain previously...
The revelation was made at a Wednesday hearing on a suit filed by Pam Hicks and John Mark Byers, two of the parents of the victims who are seeking access to police evidence in the case. During the court proceeding, Arkansas officials revealed there is an "ongoing investigation" into new affidavits made as a result of the documentary.
The film, "West of Memphis," examines the police investigation into the 1993 murders of three 8-year-old boys, Christopher Byers, Steven Branch and Michael Moore, in West Memphis. It also chronicles the arrest and ultimate release of Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley Jr. and Jason Baldwin -– the trio dubbed the "West Memphis Three."
The new affidavits, which are featured in the documentary film, contain previously...
- 10/26/2012
- by David Lohr
- Huffington Post
The American Film Institute (AFI) today announced its red carpet Centerpiece Galas and Special Screenings . comprised of award season contenders and the year.s most highly anticipated works from film masters, moving image icons and breakthrough talents . for AFI Fest 2012 presented by Audi. This year.s line up includes feature films of iconic figures such as President Abraham Lincoln, prolific filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock and Beat Generation writer Jack Kerouac, as well as non-fiction and inspired-by stories about the Central Park Five and West of Memphis teenagers, Southeast Asia tsunami survivors and much more.
As previously announced, the World Premiere of Hitchcock (Dir Sacha Gervasi) is the Opening Night Gala and the World Premiere of Lincoln (Dir Steven Spielberg) is the Closing Night Gala.
The Centerpiece Galas are Life Of Pi in 3D (Dir Ang Lee); On The Road (Dir Walter Salles);Rise Of The Guardians in 3D (Dir Peter Ramsey...
As previously announced, the World Premiere of Hitchcock (Dir Sacha Gervasi) is the Opening Night Gala and the World Premiere of Lincoln (Dir Steven Spielberg) is the Closing Night Gala.
The Centerpiece Galas are Life Of Pi in 3D (Dir Ang Lee); On The Road (Dir Walter Salles);Rise Of The Guardians in 3D (Dir Peter Ramsey...
- 10/11/2012
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
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