"If you don't have a strong case the state is gonna kill 3 young men and I can't stand by and watch that happen." In 1993 three 8 year old boys were savagely murdered. The state tried three teenagers as adults for the killings and claimed they were murdered as part of a satanic cult ritual. This is the story of the trial and how Ron Lax (Firth) tried to help the defense and how one of the mother's (Witherspoon) dealt with the loss and aftermath. I knew very little of the actual story going in. This is a movie that reminded me of the Aviator in the way that I watched a documentary and read more about the events after it was over and found those to be better and more interesting then the movie. The cast is great and has many big names as well as 3 Oscar winners, but at best this felt like a made-for-TV movie. I found it hard to really get into and was disappointed especially with this cast. I'm not saying it's not worth seeing but if you get a chance read and watch anything else on the West Memphis Three, you will be more informed and more interested then you would if you watch this movie. Overall, not bad but could have been so much better. I give this a B-.
