An American Crime

I watched this one last night. For those that don't know, it's based on the same terrible real-life events that inspired Ketchum's The Girl Next Door. While this movie isn't quite as horrifying as The Girl Next Door, it's still a harrowing and infuriating experience. I like Catherine Keener a lot and it is a credit to her talent that I had my fists clenched at a couple of points where I wished I was there to punch her goddamn face in. If you know the story, you know what I mean.
I like Catherine Keener, but I love Ellen Page, who so far has not erred in her choices of roles. An American Crime was shot before her breakout performance in Juno, but it's still a brave, fearless performance. She must have known that not a lot of people would see this movie. It's too harsh; too horrific. Would she make such a choice now? I kind of doubt it, but I'm damned curious to see where her career takes her next.

I don't know the details, but An American Crime appears to be based more on fact than The Girl Next Door. The events of the atrocity are interspersed with courtroom scenes which are supposedly taken from genuine transcriptions. For me this technique added to the suspense and the horror of the story. We know that no happy end will come of the story, even though there is a misleading sequence near the end, which I felt was the only misstep in the movie.

See An American Crime if you like uncompromising stories about the darkest side of human nature. Viewers with timid sensibilities should seek their entertainment choices elsewhere.