“The savage murders of three young children sparks a controversial trial of three teenagers accused of killing the kids as part of a Satanic ritual.” –IMDb
Devil’s Knot
Starring
Reese Witherspoon, Colin Firth, Bruce Greenwood, Martin Henderson, Mireille Enos
Directed by Atom Egoyan
BoxOffice: $2,033,154
Review
Any movie that deals with the death of children will affect me and Devil’s Knot is no different. However, this movie was so well done, that I had to keep watching. It is based on actual events and was released at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2013. If it were not for Netflix, I wouldn’t have heard about this film- so thank you, again, Netflix. While its users only rated this film at 5./10, I must say that I disagree. I would give this film at least a 7.
The acting in this film is amazing. I do not wish to give too many details. However, it was all so believable that it made me cry on numerous occasions throughout the film. I have loved Reese Witherspoon ever since Walk The Line and this movie will be added to my top 5 Witherspoon movies. Colin Firth also never ceases to amaze me. The cast was perfect and even secondary characters gave me chills.
Like any other movie based on actual events, I had to look up what actually took place. From what I read about the incident, this movie was on point in portraying the struggles of the families involved. Not only the families but the law enforcement officers working on the case, as well.
It is difficult to watch at times, so keep a Kleenex box handy. It is worth the tears to watch if you like crime movies. I also recommend that you learn about the real-life events that inspired this film. It is adapted from Mara Leveritt’s 2002 book, which is now on my “to read” book list.
This is partially why I love movies so much; they can tell you about events, people, places, and things you never knew about. It makes you feel more compassionate. Perhaps, even feel the need to change things for the better. Obviously, I don’t know what happens after we pass. But, I’d like to think that in circumstances like these, films, stories, books… I hope their spirits somehow know that they haven’t been forgotten about.