Documentary Review: ‘American Murder: The Family Next Door’ On Netflix Wednesday

Review by James Lindorf

From JonBenét to the Central Park Five to a rampaging tank, true crime documentaries have been an integral part of Netflix’s programming over the last few years. The latest entry into that club is “American Murder: The Family Next Door.” Directed by Jenny Popplewell (Student Sex Workers), “American Murder” focuses on the case of 34-year-old Shanann Watts and her two young daughters who went missing in Frederick, Colorado, in 2018. The heartbreaking details are exposed entirely through archival footage, social media posts, law enforcement recordings, text messages, and never-before-seen home videos, all painstakingly pieced together by Popplewell and her editor Simon Barker (Bellingcat: Truth in a Post-Truth World). The story of Shanann and her girls’ last days premieres on the streaming giant September 30th.

At first glance, “American Murder” is a bit of a departure for Netflix, which typically specializes in the sensational. At its core, this is the investigation of triple homicide with a single suspect. The Watts’ fate and the subsequent trial made national headlines. Unfortunately, this means there may not be that sense of tension for viewers who already know who was responsible for their disappearance. Instead of coming from the story, the drama comes in the way it is told. Popplewell was given access to interrogation footage and even the recording of a polygraph exam, which is usually only seen in police procedural shows like “Law & Order.” Unlike those shows where the investigators find evidence because the script says they do; this is an examination of a real police investigation from inception to sentencing.

Popplewell doesn’t go beyond the facts. She doesn’t try to imbibe the story with her point of view, beyond the idea that reliance and oversharing on social media can negatively affect relationships. She acts more like an archeologist piecing together all the elements to tell a complete story. At the same time, she highlighted how electronics, specifically cellphones, and cameras, play a crucial role in today’s police work. While it lacks the intrigue of “Making a Murderer,” “Tiger King,” or “Filthy Rich,” “American Murder: The Family Next Door” is the most complete examination of a single case I can remember. Some may view this deep dive into what made this family tick as an invasion of privacy. However, with so much information willfully given and shared on the world wide web, it may be time for society to realign our concept of privacy to fit the technologically advanced world.