The Leverton Review

  This film is a scathing indictment of the American justice system, and the French political establishment. One day, a maid is sexually assaulted in one of Manhattan's most luxurious hotels, by one of the world's most powerful men. The case seems pretty straightforward. The man, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the president of the IMF, with a history of sexual assault, attacked the maid. The New York police gathered the evidence, but it quickly became clear that Kahn could use all of his financial power to discredit the victim. She was accused of making it up, being unreliable and a prostitute. The prosecutor's office dropped the charges and did very little investigation of his background. If they had, they would have discovered that he was the person who lacked credibility (one of his victims had even been on television saying that he had attacked her)-of course, that was in French-so why bother investigating? Kahn's political career was ruined, but he served no time in jail,...

  I am of the generations that could watch Mr. Rogers on television, and I do have vague memories of a man tying his shoes and wearing a sweater. I had problems learning how to tie my shoes and maybe that’s why I remember it. This documentary is factual, and gives a good sense of what the man was about. He said something in the film that I think I need to hear in my life now-you don’t have to accomplish great things to be deserving of love. In my last relationship, I felt that there was so much pressure to be financially successful, and I wasn’t able to do it. I just needed to be loved. I and my ex, we both deserve love. Not because we are extraordinarily talented, or rich, or successful, but because we are humans, and all humans deserve love. That relationship failed because we both didn’t recognize that. Leverton Review 5/5

In 1993, Sean K. Ellis went to buy diapers for his cousin. When he got back, he found that both of his cousins had been murdered. Surprisingly, these murdered played only a small part in what happened to him next. He was interviewed by the police, and mentioned that he had gone to Walgreen’s to buy the diapers. He was then connected to the murder of a cop who was killed the same night. He was tried twice, which ended in a mistrial, and then at a third trial he was convicted. Then, after many years, this verdict was overturned because the cops who arrested him were corrupt, and the guy who was killed was also corrupt. The D. A. eventually drops the case, due to a lack of reliable evidence but still believes he is a killer. This is a fascinating look at the life of man who was punished for a crime he probably did not commit, and yet, in the eyes of many is a cop-killer.   Leverton Review:  4/5