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| Audrie & Daisy - Chilling |
Watch Audrie & Daisy on Netflix
Written by: Michael Goodier
Directed by: Bonni Cohen, Jon Shenk
Starring: Audrie Pott (posthumous), Daisy Coleman, Melinda Coleman
Rated: --/R
Plot:
This Netflix original documentary follows two cases of rape through court documents, cyber-bullying, and police investigations.
Verdict:
This is a really good documentary, but it shows just how disgusting and despicable people can be. The subject matter is tough. Three girls are primarily portrayed. They were assaulted and then bullied for it. The assailants were released with few if any ramifications. This will both make you feel terrible and enrage you. It's crucial to see, to realize that poor decisions can careen out of control and to see just a brief glimpse into the life of a victim. They're human beings and that should mean something.
Watch it.
Review:
At first I thought this might tackle both sides of an assault as it opens with two boys accused of assault. That doesn't happen. It doesn't need to. The focus of this documentary soon becomes clear.
This is paced really well, where it sets up these middle school boys that have a directory to store pictures of their classmates and then it just gets worse. Some girls willingly send nude images of themselves, but Audrie was an unwilling participant.
That situation shows you how silly decisions like drawing on someone with marker can turn bad, especially when judgement is impaired and peer pressure is involved. It goes from drawing on her to sexual assault. They stripped her and these kids took pictures of the assault. There is no excuse for these acts regardless of circumstance.
The focus shifts from Audrie to Daisy with a segue from another girl that attempted suicide after a similar incident. She states that the assault wasn't that bad compared to the bullying that happened afterwards. It's a sad world when things like this occur, with multiple witness who watch it happen, do nothing to prevent it.
Daisy was raped by her brother's best friends. In an interview he asks why one of them couldn't text him and say his sister needed help. They did nothing.
The charges were dropped in Daisy's case. While the sheriff being interviewed had said some questionable things, I wrote it off until he said that rape didn't occur that night. It's a fact that Daisy's blood alcohol level was dangerously high, and that those boys dropped her off on her lawn half clothed in winter after they were done with her.
The film maker asks the sheriff if sex with somebody who is unconscious is rape and the sheriff of the county states that is for the court to decide.
The content of this documentary is sickening and sad, but I was flabbergasted that a law enforcement officer would say that. There is nothing to decide. Without consent, it's rape. The Nodaway sheriff sounds incredibly biased when he later states the boys want to move on and make something with their lives and that the girls need to take responsibility. Even though the case was dropped, a crime occurred. Even if the court can't prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt, how can you blame the victim? The court dropping the case doesn't mean the crime didn't happen, just that it can't be proven to the degree the law demands.
With Daisy's interviews, it's worth noting as it took me a while to figure out that her interviews appeared to have occurred at two distinct times. She looks noticeably different where she's blond in one interview and has dark hair in the other. Initially I thought it was two different people.
The aftermath of both cases is almost more appalling. Daisy endured online hate and bullying. Her house was burned down. With Audrie, the boys were convicted of multiple felonies and got thirty non-consecutive days in jail, which means only on the weekend so that it didn't interfere with their daily lives. It's a slap on the wrist for assaulting someone.
How many people don't want to say anything when they are assaulted for fear of repercussion, afraid that as a victim they'll be ostracized? That fear is very real as evidenced by this documentary. People's desires trump human decency and compassion. No one stops a crime in progress. People will aggressively attack the victims of a crime online, calling them liars.
A crass comparison is a stolen car. No one would claim it's the owner's fault for driving a nice car or even leaving the keys in it. In the case of an actual person, putting yourself in a questionable position makes it your fault as opposed to the perpetrator. It's ridiculous.
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