Hot on the heels of Breaking Bad & OITNB, Netflix scored yet another blinder by securing first streaming rights to Making a Murderer back in December. Laura Ricciardi & Moira Demos’ 10 part documentary has literally had people watching through the night, oversleeping and getting in late for work. For many, Making a Murderer is their first taste of the true crime genre that I’ve been fanatical about since the 90s. I’m an addict and on my bookshelf you’ll find every book ever written by the likes of Vincent Bugliosi, Howard Sounes and Brian Masters, and you’ll often find me camped out on the sofa at 3am watching crime docs on our Viera 4K TV.

So if you’ve caught the bug, here are 6 must-see true crime documentaries for Making a Murderer fans who are thirsty for more…

1 - Nick Broomfield’s Aileen: Life & Death of a Serial Killer (2003)

Storytelling at its best, this documentary inspired the film Monster for which Charlize Theron won a Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress in 2004. In fact, this is perhaps the most detailed exploration you’ll find of Aileen Wuornos, a highway hooker responsible for murdering 7 men and eventually executed in 2002.

This is actually the second Broomfield documentary on Aileen (the first being Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer (1992)) and he does little to disguise his sympathy for her and contempt for the death penalty. Rather the filmmaker has developed a relationship of sorts with her and enjoys access to childhood friends, lawyers, former lovers and Wuornos herself festering on death row. This is a biography and then some, and an attempt to answer the questions we all want to know - Is she evil? What prompted her to it? Is she to be pitied, or maligned?

The result is one of the saddest stories I’ve watched. Hers was a tragic life from day one; sexually molested by family members, living in freezing cold woods having been ejected from the family home, even performing sexual favours for cigarettes. Following her arrest she was let down by the one person she loved, and those with a duty to protect her. There’s more than a nod to his first film too, and he details the commodification of Wuornos by police, lawyers and her “most trusted” friends, all eager to cash in on her story. Even behind bars she was used and manipulated, leaving you both saddened and relieved when her execution comes around.

2 - Berlinger & Sinofsky’s Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills (1996)

I feel stupid even putting this one on the list, I mean, if you like true crime you’ve probably seen this a million times, and might even credit it as the film that got you hooked in the first place. This film has it ALL - a triple child murder, three teenage suspects a.k.a The West Memphis 3 (one of whom is into black clothing & Stephen King - and therefore, of course, satanic cults) and a white trash community on the bible belt. Like so many of these cases, one of the defendants, Jessie Misskelley, has a low IQ and was coerced into admitting to murder, incriminating his co-defendants Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin. As the “ringleader” of the trio, Echols was sent to death row. To date, not one piece of substantial evidence, physical or otherwise, has connected the three men to the crime.

This landmark documentary took on cult-like status, and like Making a Murderer, left people angry and saddened. Support groups were formed and speculation on forums became almost all-consuming. Amateur activists & celebrities alike publicly voiced support, and raised petitions and funds to Free The Memphis 3. Although all were eventually released the need to know what really happened continues to this day and has led to subsequent chapters in the Paradise saga - all of which are equally brilliantly disturbing. People’s attention shifted to other likely suspects - and trust me, there’s enough of them! In fact, the parents and step parents of the murdered are among the strangest you’re likely to see.

I could talk about this documentary ALL day and ALL night but I don’t want to give anything away. Watch it. Please, please, please watch it. Then come back here and leave me a comment so we can play detective together.

4 - Berlinger & Sinofsky’s Brother’s Keeper (1992)

This feature length documentary showcases a strange-but-true story about a most unorthodox family. 59-year-old Delbert Ward lives with his elderly brothers Bill, Roscoe, and Lyman in isolation from the rest of society on a farm in Syracuse, New York. Described as “barely functioning” on an adult level, when one of the brother’s (William) dies after a protracted period of ill health, the authorities intervene. A medical examiner then rules that William may not have died from natural causes, and instead there is evidence of asphyxiation.

Youngest brother Delbert (who shared a bed with William - I kid you not!) is then arrested and subsequently convicted of second degree murder. The prosecution theorises that Delbert has smothered William out of mercy. Furthermore, it is revealed that during the coroner’s examination semen was found William’s leg, suggesting that he might be a victim of “sex gone bad” between the brothers.

More of slow-burn, the film verges on voyeuristic at times, magnified by the obvious eccentricity of the Ward brothers. They lived in such extreme poverty that a broken clock shown in the opening credits offers a metaphor for their existence - theirs was a life where time literally stood still. The film sits some way between disturbing and fascinating to watch yet offers a illuminating insight into family and community dynamics in rural America.

5 - Ken & Sarah Burns’ Central Park Five (2012)

This documentary follows the story of 5 black and Latino men from Harlem wrongly convicted of the violent assault, rape and sodomy of Trisha Meili, a 28-year-old banker who had been jogging in New York City’s Central Park. The men, who were teenagers at the time of the crime in 1989 were Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise. Following lengthy trials, all were found guilty and went on to serve between 6 and 13 years behind bars.

Described in the New York Times (2002) as the “painful, angry, scrupulously reported story of race, injustice and media frenzy” this film explores how these young men were coerced into confessing to a crime they did not commit. The film does a powerful job of showcasing the racial tension in 80s inner city New York, acting as a social commentary as well as a crime story. It also highlights the role of the media in racial stereotyping, stoking up tension and rabble-rousing the public to rush to judgement.

Perhaps the most chilling miscarriages of justice in modern US history, if you liked Making a Murderer, this one needs to shimmy up your watch list pronto.

6 - Liz Garbus’ “There’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane” (2011)

This case broke via mainstream media back in 2009 covered by entertainment powerhouses such as Oprah, Larry King and Dr Phil. The story revolves around a collision on the Taconic State Parkway in which 36-year-old Diane Schuler drove a minivan filled with children the wrong way on the parkway for 1.7 miles before crashing headfirst into an SUV, killing herself and seven others including her daughter and three nieces. There was one survivor, Diane’s son, Brian.

Toxicology reports by the medical examiner suggested that Schuler was intoxicated with marijuana (THC) and alcohol (the equivalent of 10 drinks) at the time of the crash, yet this was strenuously denied by her family and grieving husband, Daniel who described her as “a perfect wife, outstanding mother… (she was a) hard-worker, reliable person, trustworthy… I’d marry her again tomorrow. She’s awesome, she’s the best“. And so, at the heart of the documentary is the two very conflicting sides of Diane - is she a functioning alcoholic, or was there more to this story?

 

That’s it, although there are dozens more I could list. Do let me know if you want a ‘part 2′ by leaving a comment below