Film Review: "Victim/Suspect" (2023).

From the director of Roll Red Roll comes Victim/Suspect. This documentary film directed by Nancy Schwartzman. The film chronicles journalist Rae de Leon’s investigation into a shocking nationwide pattern: Young women tell the police they’ve been sexually assaulted, but instead of finding justice, they’re charged with the crime of making a false report, arrested, and even imprisoned by the system they believed would protect them.

Prepare to be terrified and infuriated as the filmmakers detail how a draconian American justice system and corrupt police prey upon vulnerable young female victims to turn them from victims to suspects and wreck their lives. No extra fluff is added to the re-examination of this story, from security footage to the frank discussions each person involved has with the camera. Smart enough to ask its viewers why exactly they're finding so much enjoyment in watching this horror show unfold, this is true crime done right. Director Nancy Schwartzman did a good job of keeping things balanced and of illustrating the ways in which the American justice system is broken. The film constantly toys with the idea of viewer perception and pre-conceived notions, knowing that even the smallest glance or crack in one's voice can be interpreted to "prove" innocence or guilt -- depending on what you want to believe. For a viewer who chose to avoid the salacious, never-ending TV and tabloid coverage of its namesake, the film makes for succinct, involving viewing. An interesting introduction to (or reminder of) the stories of several young women being accused and/or convicted of filing false reports of sexual assaults, but it doesn't quite have the depth of other recent true-crime investigations. The film will provide enough for examination die-hards to go out and learn more about the stories after watching it, but this feature definitely won't turn as many heads as fellow Netflix crime documentaries. The point of the film is not only to determine whether or not the women were truly innocent, but also rather to analyse how American law enforcement and the American justice system is flawed in the first place. The film is put together like a sleek thriller - complete with a determined young journalist trying to get to the bottom of the story, and be found, obsessed, intruding on interviewees' homes, often with a laptop or phone copiously noting everything. As an indictment of a number of institutions than failed dismally in their mission to uncover the truth about the young women's convictions, the film is sharp, and frequently enraging. You don't have to remember the gutter headlines inspired by its namesake to find the true-crime documentary completely riveting. Different viewers will come to the same conclusions about the American justice system, and without doubt this strong documentary sheds a powerful light on this particular case while emphasizing the ultimate unknowability of absolute truth. What you end up with are portraits of individuals - people who are scared or angry or broken - all a part of a story that, from the start, ignored their humanity.

Simon says Victim/Suspect receives: