An American Crime

After the protracted torments of An American Crime, I'm looking forward to seeing a more empowered Ellen Page (Juno) back to her droll, sprightly self in the upcoming film, Super. Crime is a hard movie to watch. As true-life suburban torture victim Sylvia Likens, Page's natural sweetness and incandescence makes her character's ordeal that much more surreal and unbearable. A searing movie that deserves to be seen, but I won't be watching it twice. 

My only serious quarrel with Tommy O'Haver's film is that he makes the unutterably vile Gertrude Baniszewski (Catherine Keener) far more sympathetic than her character deserved. There ought to be a special level of hell reserved for such people: to attempt to "humanize" a wretch the likes of Baniszewski is to do a disservice to the memory of her horrifically abused victim.

Thing from hell: Baniszewski

  (photo: Wikipedia)