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Victim/Suspect

Play trailer Poster for Victim/Suspect R Released May 23, 2023 1h 30m Documentary Crime Play Trailer Watchlist
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79% Tomatometer 34 Reviews 74% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
On her first solo investigation, journalist Rae de Leon travels nationwide to uncover a shocking 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.
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Victim/Suspect

Victim/Suspect

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Critics Consensus

Although it's arguably not quite the documentary its subject deserves, Victim/Suspect remains an important and infuriating piece of journalism.

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Critics Reviews

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Nick Allen RogerEbert.com A document of superb journalism but is unfortunately told in a sludgy, distracting fashion. Rated: 2.5/4 May 24, 2023 Full Review Natalia Winkelman New York Times The film, which examines cases in which sexual assault survivors are charged with false reporting, is the rare entry whose revelations feel cogent, earned and memorable. May 24, 2023 Full Review Nick Schager The Daily Beast A film about a police culture that doesn’t seem to take rape charges seriously—or, at the very least, doesn’t think that thoroughly examining accusations is worth the hassle when intimidation and humiliation will facilitate their jobs. May 23, 2023 Full Review Anna Menta Decider Victim/Suspect is a must-watch because it demonstrates the deterrents to rape victims coming forward are far more dire than most of us realized. Jan 19, 2024 Full Review Eileen G'Sell Hyperallergic "Victim/Suspect" exposes the extent to which women, conditioned to apologize for any inconvenience, are vulnerable to pressures to take the blame, and even serve time, for their own violent rapes. Jun 26, 2023 Full Review Glenn Dunks The Film Experience Schwartzman is never able to put any sort of authorial stamp on the material. Like many Netflix productions, cinematography is uninteresting and the editing rather pedestrian. Jun 26, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (25) audience reviews
Melissa B This film was so well done and it made me so. angry. The audacity of these police officers to charge survivors with false reporting is infuriating. I am so glad this film was made and these stories are being told but it also made me want to throw things. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/25/24 Full Review Lexie B Just a continued look into victim blaming, and why victims are terrified to come forward. That for some reason when it comes to SA, victims are lying regardless of evidence, and the perpetrators are innocent even if they're guilty. It also showcases the intimidation, abuse, and continued violations SA victims are subject to when they seek justice. It is infuriating, and this documentary very clearly demonstrates that. I was a SANE nurse for 6 years, and also a survivor myself. These instances shown in this documentary is the reason why I became a SANE nurse, so the survivor would always have an advocate. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/22/24 Full Review inta k eduaim.moodle.mii.lv Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 12/28/23 Full Review M C This is important journalism! Too many as are victims of the system. Thank you for this! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/10/23 Full Review Jennifer H This is an eyeopener. This storyline is written well and shows Police do NOT care for women's rightr. Whatever Roger Ebert review. He's an idiot who is a freaking dinosaur that needs to reform his opinions to current understanding. These days are not the Good Ole Boys Club anymore. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/27/23 Full Review Kristi B As a woman who has been victim to a sexual crime I was not impressed with this 'documentary'. It was very clear that the filmmaker had an agenda to cause an uproar about a topic, so she tried to scrounge up anything she could to fit her thesis. The film focuses on 3 cases to try to prove her point... The first case leaves out so much information it is hard to fairly judge what happened. All we really know is that the woman tells her mom the next morning "something happened that I didn't want it to happen". The police essentially tells her we have video footage that shows you were having a good time with him (it comes to light that they were mistaken about who was in the video footage), so she admits she lied and pleads guilty to filing a false report. The film leads us to believe she was cold and uncomfortable, and that's why she agrees with the officer that she lied? The second case supports the documentary narrative very well and does seem to prove poor police work. Although the shortest segment, if this was the only case presented in the film, I would have found this film more interesting and more honest. But then comes in the third case, which is utterly ridiculous. This woman's story is that she is a psychology & criminal justice major who claimed she was assaulted by a police officer who pulled her over. She doesn't ever make an attempt to describe what the officer looks like when asked, and all it took the investigator to get the her to confess that she was lying was to calmly say "we found some video, and we see your car go by but no one else. The last thing I want to do is call you a liar, but no stop happened did it?" And she say "NO". He asks "why did you make this up?" She says "I don't know" before agreeing to come down to the station to sign paperwork admitting she lied. So what good reason does the documentary give for her admitting that she lied so quickly if she wasn't lying? Uh.. it doesn't. The documentary ends on a pretty cringy 'victims statement' to some new police recruits, a basically 'Believe all women' mantra, including the woman from the first and third case. It was hard to watch. Good take aways for me: Should the burden of proof fall on the victim? No. Are there women who report sexual assault and who are not believed by police, the results of which are harmful? Yes. But there was NO other side of the story... are there women who lie to police and waste precious resources? Yes. What happens to the male victims of false rape claims? What happens to other victims who don't get the full focus of police on their cases because of liars (seemingly like the last case in the documentary) who are wasting everyone's time? Should they just go free with no punishment?... This film maker seems to think so. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 08/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Movie Info

Synopsis On her first solo investigation, journalist Rae de Leon travels nationwide to uncover a shocking 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.
Director
Nancy Schwartzman
Producer
Christopher Clements, Rachel De Leon, Julie Goldman, Alice Henty, Amanda Pike, Nancy Schwartzman
Distributor
Netflix
Production Co
Center for Investigative Reporting Studios, Motto Pictures
Rating
R (Some Language)
Genre
Documentary, Crime
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 23, 2023, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
May 23, 2023
Runtime
1h 30m
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