On I List of Movie Reviews
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Indictment: The McMartin Trial (1995)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
8/06, 6/20
8/06:
Indictment: The McMartin Trial is a riveting courtroom drama picture that remains a must-see today.
The story of what happened makes it gripping to watch. James Woods is brilliant, and ditto for Sada Thompson, Shirley
Knight, and Henry Thomas for their outstanding performances.
All in all, Indictment: The McMartin Trial tells a damning narrative about the longest and most expensive case in
U.S. history because of made-up stories, resulting in no convictions.
6/20:
Ever heard of the word "overcharged"?
Then, look no further than Indictment: The McMartin Trial. Over 300 charges were filed against the accused for child
abuse at their family-run daycare. They were tried for seven years, and the state spent over $15 million on the case.
Not one person was found guilty of a single charge, making it the longest and most expensive case in American history.
Ironically, the true criminals turned out to be Judy Johnson, the children, Jane Hoag, Kee MacFarlane, Wayne Satz, Robert
Philibosian, and Lael Rubin because of their political aims, false reporting, made-up stories, purposeful ignorance of
what was really going on, questionable interview techniques which involved leading questions and gross-looking dolls with
exposed genitals, sensational journalism, and misguided crusade to exploit sexual deviance despite no evidence of any wrongdoing.
Unfortunately, the accused never recovered afterwards and only won a total of $1 in damages after their successful
multimillion-dollar judgment against a family for slander. One of the supposedly molested kids confessed in 2005:
"Never did anyone do anything to me, and I never saw them doing anything. I said a lot of things that didn't happen. I lied.
Anytime I would give them an answer that they didn't like, they would ask again and encourage me to give them the answer they
were looking for. I felt uncomfortable and a little ashamed that I was being dishonest. But at the same time, being the type
of person I was, whatever my parents wanted me to do, I would do."
The cast is excellent. James Woods is captivating as always. A special mention must be made to Henry Thomas,
Sada Thompson, and Shirley Knight for their superb peformances as the accused molesters. Naturally, they were denounced guilty
as hell right from the start because of how they looked.
All in all, Indictment: The McMartin Trial shows how the accused can be guilty until proven innocent.