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Perfect Murder, Perfect Town
Ventura // Unrated // May 27, 2003
List Price: $19.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
THE MOVIE
Perfect Murder Perfect Town is a 2000 two-part mini-series that ran on CBS that is being released on DVD with 18 minutes of additional footage not seen on TV, making the entire presentation over three hours in length. And while that may seem a bit long for one sitting, I found the time to fly by thanks to the fine construction of the movie by director Lawrence Schiller, who also wrote the book upon which the movie is based.
The film takes us back to Christmas 1996 and the events surrounding the never-solved murder of young Jon Benet Ramsey. Although there are a couple of short flashbacks prior to the time of the murder, the majority of the film covers the day Jon Benet's body was discovered, through two years of investigation by the police, the FBI and the district attorney, and finally the commencement of the grand jury to decide if there would be an indictment almost two years after the crime had occurred.
What I liked most about the film is that it doesn't take any sides on who may have committed the crime. As those who followed the case already know, both of Jon Benet's parents (played solidly here by Ronny Cox and Marg Helgenberger) were crucified in the press and all but convicted of the murders. And while the evidence is presented that seems to point to one or both of the Ramseys, equally strong evidence is presented that seems to indicate that it was indeed someone outside the family.
And while the film takes time to show the mistakes and one-mindedness of many of the investigators involved, it also subtlety places a great deal of blame on the American press, who seemed determined to pin the murder on the Ramseys, regardless of what the evidence might show.
The casting for Perfect Murder Perfect Town adds a lot to the film, as almost everyone bears some resemblance to their real-life counterpart. The movie is also presented in an almost documentary style, with titles popping up to identify names, dates and locations, and with real news footage inserted in between the dramatic scenes.
THE DVD
Video:
Presented full-screen, the transfer here is mostly free from flaws, although the video does have a very "soft" look to it and the color seems somewhat washed-out. Having never seen this when it originally aired on TV, I cannot really say how this compares to the original presentation, but compared to other transfers of television movies on the digital format, this one is fairly average. There is a layer change that happens not to long after the 90-mark that is noticeable, but not too distracting since it happens during an outside shot of the town.
Audio:
The audio is presented in 2.0 Dolby, and is also very average. Since the movie is quite heavy on dialogue anyway, the audio proves to be quite serviceable. There's nothing about it that will either add or detract from your enjoyment of the film.
Extras:
The only extra on this DVD is an audio commentary track by director Lawrence Schiller, but it's a good one – as Schiller goes into detail about how he got involved in the case and takes time to better explain the evidence that comes up during the course of the movie. The track actually adds to the viewer's education about the Ramsey case, and considering the track itself is more recent than the actual film, it's great to hear Schiller's thoughts as even more time has passed since the murder, which of course, remains unsolved.
THE BOTTOM LINE
I'm always a little wary about made-for-TV movies because the vast majority of them tend to be overly melodramatic and not very well made. However, I was pleasantly surprised by Perfect Murder Perfect Town, and recommend it to anyone who had an interest in this case, or enjoys watching a good murder-mystery.
You won't get any answers here, but you will get a lot of questions – questions that make you think. And any movie that actually makes you think long after the credits have rolled is worth your time, in my book.
Perfect Murder Perfect Town is a 2000 two-part mini-series that ran on CBS that is being released on DVD with 18 minutes of additional footage not seen on TV, making the entire presentation over three hours in length. And while that may seem a bit long for one sitting, I found the time to fly by thanks to the fine construction of the movie by director Lawrence Schiller, who also wrote the book upon which the movie is based.
The film takes us back to Christmas 1996 and the events surrounding the never-solved murder of young Jon Benet Ramsey. Although there are a couple of short flashbacks prior to the time of the murder, the majority of the film covers the day Jon Benet's body was discovered, through two years of investigation by the police, the FBI and the district attorney, and finally the commencement of the grand jury to decide if there would be an indictment almost two years after the crime had occurred.
What I liked most about the film is that it doesn't take any sides on who may have committed the crime. As those who followed the case already know, both of Jon Benet's parents (played solidly here by Ronny Cox and Marg Helgenberger) were crucified in the press and all but convicted of the murders. And while the evidence is presented that seems to point to one or both of the Ramseys, equally strong evidence is presented that seems to indicate that it was indeed someone outside the family.
And while the film takes time to show the mistakes and one-mindedness of many of the investigators involved, it also subtlety places a great deal of blame on the American press, who seemed determined to pin the murder on the Ramseys, regardless of what the evidence might show.
The casting for Perfect Murder Perfect Town adds a lot to the film, as almost everyone bears some resemblance to their real-life counterpart. The movie is also presented in an almost documentary style, with titles popping up to identify names, dates and locations, and with real news footage inserted in between the dramatic scenes.
THE DVD
Video:
Presented full-screen, the transfer here is mostly free from flaws, although the video does have a very "soft" look to it and the color seems somewhat washed-out. Having never seen this when it originally aired on TV, I cannot really say how this compares to the original presentation, but compared to other transfers of television movies on the digital format, this one is fairly average. There is a layer change that happens not to long after the 90-mark that is noticeable, but not too distracting since it happens during an outside shot of the town.
Audio:
The audio is presented in 2.0 Dolby, and is also very average. Since the movie is quite heavy on dialogue anyway, the audio proves to be quite serviceable. There's nothing about it that will either add or detract from your enjoyment of the film.
Extras:
The only extra on this DVD is an audio commentary track by director Lawrence Schiller, but it's a good one – as Schiller goes into detail about how he got involved in the case and takes time to better explain the evidence that comes up during the course of the movie. The track actually adds to the viewer's education about the Ramsey case, and considering the track itself is more recent than the actual film, it's great to hear Schiller's thoughts as even more time has passed since the murder, which of course, remains unsolved.
THE BOTTOM LINE
I'm always a little wary about made-for-TV movies because the vast majority of them tend to be overly melodramatic and not very well made. However, I was pleasantly surprised by Perfect Murder Perfect Town, and recommend it to anyone who had an interest in this case, or enjoys watching a good murder-mystery.
You won't get any answers here, but you will get a lot of questions – questions that make you think. And any movie that actually makes you think long after the credits have rolled is worth your time, in my book.
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