This isn't the first movie I saw which includes the use of social media or only those using a computer screen. I've watched Searching and Unfriended: The Dark Web before.
When I first saw some video clips of Why Did You Kill Me?, I thought it was just another film similar to the two I mentioned above. However, when I watched the actual film, it was different as it's based on a true crime story. I want to talk about it here.
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WARNING... MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
This isn't really a review.... it's more on what I think about the case and the situation shown in the film.
WHAT IS THE FILM ABOUT?
The film is about the murder of the 24-year old Crystal Theobald in 2006 and her mother tracking the suspects down on Myspace.
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As you've seen in the trailer above, Belinda (Crystal's mother) and Jamie (her younger cousin) decided to investigate and gather information on the gang members that are most likely related to Crystal's death. They created a fake account using Crystal's photo and Jamie acted as if she was Crystal.
At first, I was confused because if they killed Crystal, wouldn't they knew that the account was fake... they killed her, right? But later on it was known that even the murderer and the people involved didn't know who they killed. Crystal was just a victim of a misunderstanding and it sucks.
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As the investigation was ongoing, I was also confused about the family not being very cooperative. Belinda said that she hates the police... and then was later on found out that she has been to prison before for using and selling drugs. Her other sons have also been in and out of jail for various reasons. And it all made sense to me....
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I find it amazing how they were able to find more information with the help of a fake account in MySpace. I also admire Jamie, Crystal's cousin, for putting in a lot of effort on creating and talking with the gang members. I can understand why she gave up and handed over the passwords to Belinda, though. I really like it when she said, "Making someone fall in love with someone who's dead isn't a good feeling."
I know they were doing it for Crystal but the fact of putting the law into your hands wouldn't bring you any good.
There are things that I've learned from the film and their story...
- Revenge is never a good thing.
Yes, it's important to seek for justice. It could give the people left behind a peace of mind. However, revenge is such a strong word. Well, if I were in their shoes, I might do things I shouldn't... and I won't be a hypocrite about it. But yes, I'd have to deal with the consequences later on.
- Loyalty is crucial, until it endangers you and your loved ones.
It's awesome how the crew of this film was able to interview even some people who were directly involved with the crime. It has been more than ten years and the perpetrators have been arrested. I somehow admire their loyalty to each other. They mentioned that being a gang member is like being part of their family, however, it proved that blood is still thicker than water. One of the gang members cooperated with the investigation bravely when his brother and his parents were attacked.
- Forgiveness is difficult to give, but it's possible to forgive.
Despite the things that happened, the family somehow forgave the culprit. It's a very difficult thing to do, but they still did. Instead of the death penalty, the sentence was changed to lifetime imprisonment without parole. This sentence is still very hard, but at least, he gets to live.
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Having someone die is never a good thing, but I'm glad to know that the family got the justice they've been looking for. I'm also happy that the incident changed their lives in a good way... both the family of the victim and those that were involved in the case. May Crystal's soul rest in peace.
Thanks a lot for checking this out! See you next time~! (_)/