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An American Crime
Directed by: Tommy O'Haver
Starring: Ellen Page
Genre:
Drama
Run Time: 97 min.
Release Date:
January 2007
On The Web:
Unofficial Site
Teaser:
Movie Trailer
Reviewed by: Byron
Merritt |
This film is so disgusting, so horridly grotesque and
inhumane, that you won’t be able to pull yourself away; like
rubbernecking at a really bad car wreck.
Based on the true story of Sylvia Likens (played here by Ellen Page,
JUNO) and her
terminal abuse at the hands of the mentally deranged Gertrude
Baniszewski (Catherine Keener,
CAPOTE), the film pulls no punches,
giving us all the terrible sequences that led up to Sylvia’s death at
the age of thirteen.
More disturbing (to me, at least) was the fact that Sylvia’s parents
dropped her (and her sister) off with a woman they knew very, very
little about. But leaving Sylvia and her sister Jennifer (Hayley
McFarland, 24) with a mentally ill woman (that they didn’t know was
mentally ill) probably isn’t that much of a shock considering it was a
time when America was still battling with its ideals (the 60s). Going
beyond horrifying is the fact that neighbors heard the screams of Sylvia
but did nothing about it. And young kids in the neighborhood partook in
the abuse of Sylvia and no one, not one single person, thought to
contact the authorities. The horrors of watching Sylvia’s physical
decline paled in comparison to the horrors of what didn’t get done.
Catherine Keener was nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her
creepy performance, and well deserved are those accolades. Her
transference of all that was wrong in her life onto Sylvia is completely
believable, making her role as Gertrude exceptionally frightening.
A word of caution: this film is not for the light of heart. It is
brutal, unflinching storytelling about a time when America had to
identify problems it wanted to keep hidden, and this film shows that in
all of its goose-bumping, gory, glory. If you can’t handle seeing truly
disturbing images of child abuse and neglect, then stay away. But if you
can handle that, and are a steward of gritty film-making, this one won’t
disappoint.
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Image from An American
Crime
DVD cost: $15.99
Purchase:
Tower.com
Film Review Stew
Favorite? No.
Stew Poo-Poo? No.
Newsworthy:
There are a few historical
inaccuracies in this film, such as Sylvia's body was found in an
upstairs bedroom in real life, not the kitchen. Also, Gertrude had seven
kids, where in the movie she says she has six.
Movie Quote: "Don't
worry Jennie. Mamma's just teaching her."
Other Actors/Actresses
from An American Crime
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