The death of JonBenet Ramsey remains one of the most intriguing and controversial murder cases of all time – awash with mystery and accusation, with pretty much everyone having an idea as to who is responsible for the six year old’s death, but no-one having the evidence for a conviction.
Kitty Green’s Netflix documentary film Casting JonBenet takes a new approach to the true crime documentary, expanding those ‘recreation’ scenes that we often see in such films and exploring the whole process of being an actor playing a role where you might have very strong ideas about the guilt – or innocence – of the person you are playing. It plays with the mythology of the case and the attitudes of parents and children in the Colorado community where the crime happened.
We’ve yet to see it, but it looks fascinating – but equally, might be irritatingly smug. The trailer offers few clues, appropriately enough, but will make you want to tune in to find out on April 28th.
