Dear Zachary - 2008

Incredibly Strange Film Festival
Dear Zachary - 2008

One line review: True life documentary, both a love letter to a lost friend and an emotional gut punch of a crime story. Highly recommended.


Right from the onset, it is put front and center, this is both a documentary scrapbook from a film maker to his best friend, and that his friend was murdered. Film maker Kurt Kuenne literally travels the world collecting remembrances to his friend from all the people in his life, friends, family, co workers and patients. So there are two time lines running. The historical story, assembled from all manner of family photos, home video and interviews, and the developing story as much more is revealed about the murder.

So, you know, it is going to be sweet and fluffy and warm and funny on one hand, and on the other, it is not going to end well.

Things develop. The focus and entire point of the documentary changes at least twice. It is REALLY not going to end well.

And I am not going to tell you how it develops or ends. You just have to see it and take the journey.

It has to be said, it is an emotionally manipulative movie. No attempt is made to hide the film makers or interviewees emotion. Voice overs break up, subjects break down in tears. Given the subject matter, the access to the people, and the developing story, it earns the right to be very emotional. Unless you are a devoid of human empathy, you WILL have a reaction to what is presented on screen and you will have strong feelings about what went on.

All documentaries have a point of view. The very act of shooting footage and cutting it together presents a point of view. What is shown, what is cut out of frame, where people are seated, how they are lit, the questions asked, how things are cut together, all aspects of cinema convey a point of view. Even trying to film, frame and edit everything as antiseptically as possible would present a point of view, that the documentary maker wants you to have an antiseptic view of what is on show. So, yes, things shown here have a strong and personal point of view, but unlike say a Michael Moore who will aggravate and alienate those that do not share his political ideals, this documentary takes a look at a crime that most cannot disagree with.

Fundamentally this deals with the abstract constructs of justice and law. These are things that are not physically real. You can't grind up justice and sprinkle it on your omelette's, you cannot measure the volume or density of law. And this movie presents an up close and personal look at people going through the 'law' system looking for 'justice' for their loved one. And it ain't pretty.

Highly recommended. But if you tear up easily, bring a hanky and a shoulder to cry on.