Tony Sokol Jan 14, 2019
While nothing has been established, bike stealing teens on True Detective season 3 might be a nod to the West Memphis Three.
True Detective Season 3 has only just begun and the suspects in the Purcell missing children case are piling up. Series creator and writer Nic Pizzolatto has been known to dig deep into the criminal underground for inspiration, and the state of Arkansas has more than a few skeletons buried in its mountainous woods. The kids who disappeared at the beginning of True Detective were spotted by quite a few of their neighbors on the afternoon they were last seen and we don't know who are witnesses and who might be the abductor. We see a scrapper, several people on the block and a gang of teenagers in a purple Volkswagen Beetle. If the kids look guilty perhaps it’s because they might be a nod to the West Memphis Three.
While nothing has been established, bike stealing teens on True Detective season 3 might be a nod to the West Memphis Three.
True Detective Season 3 has only just begun and the suspects in the Purcell missing children case are piling up. Series creator and writer Nic Pizzolatto has been known to dig deep into the criminal underground for inspiration, and the state of Arkansas has more than a few skeletons buried in its mountainous woods. The kids who disappeared at the beginning of True Detective were spotted by quite a few of their neighbors on the afternoon they were last seen and we don't know who are witnesses and who might be the abductor. We see a scrapper, several people on the block and a gang of teenagers in a purple Volkswagen Beetle. If the kids look guilty perhaps it’s because they might be a nod to the West Memphis Three.
- 1/13/2019
- Den of Geek
When filmmakers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky arrived in West Memphis, Arkansas in June 1993, they came with an agenda: to document what looked like a new wave of alienated youth-turned-murderers. A few months earlier, two 10-year-olds in the U.K. had made headlines when they abducted, tortured and murdered a two-year-old, and now the filmmakers had read about the brutal murders of three eight-year-old boys ostensibly committed by teenage Satanists. It seemed like a trend. "We went down to make a film about guilty teenagers, like a real Rivers Edge,...
- 12/14/2016
- Rollingstone.com
The 1993 murders of three young boys in West Memphis, Arkansas, has been explored time and time again, in documentaries like HBO’s Paradise Lost trilogy and Peter Jackson’s West of Memphis, but pop culture can’t seem to leave the sensational case alone. The question of whether Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, Jr. were actually guilty of the savage crimes seems to destined never to be definitively answered, though most films about the case have emphasized how tenuous links between the trio and the murders actually were.
Devil’s Knot, Atom Egoyan’s dramatization of the investigation and subsequent trials, features bankable Hollywood stars like Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon, and that star power makes this retelling more likely to appeal to the masses than the documentary coverage. That’s why it’s so unfortunate that Egoyan never manages to do right by his powerful source material.
Devil’s Knot, Atom Egoyan’s dramatization of the investigation and subsequent trials, features bankable Hollywood stars like Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon, and that star power makes this retelling more likely to appeal to the masses than the documentary coverage. That’s why it’s so unfortunate that Egoyan never manages to do right by his powerful source material.
- 5/10/2014
- by Isaac Feldberg
- We Got This Covered
With shooting starting last week in Georgia, Atom Egoyan’s West Memphis Three drama “The Devi’s Knot” added some new cast members to the already extensive ensemble.
First up, the “True Blood” star Stephen Moyer is playing prosecutor John Fogelman and is joining the shoot immediately to take advantage of the hole he has in his schedule for the HBO vampire drama. Moyer hasn’t yet made an impression on the big screen, but we think this bodes well for him as the material has plenty of dramatic potential. “Lost” baddie Kevin Durand (who you'll see in the upcoming "Cosmopolis") is playing John Mark Byers, a role which, if you’re familiar with the “Paradise Lost” trilogy, will likely take advantage of Durand’s penchant for playing smarmy villains. And lastly, character actor Rex Linn, who you may know from the cancelled “CSI: Miami” and Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming “southern” “Django Unchained,...
First up, the “True Blood” star Stephen Moyer is playing prosecutor John Fogelman and is joining the shoot immediately to take advantage of the hole he has in his schedule for the HBO vampire drama. Moyer hasn’t yet made an impression on the big screen, but we think this bodes well for him as the material has plenty of dramatic potential. “Lost” baddie Kevin Durand (who you'll see in the upcoming "Cosmopolis") is playing John Mark Byers, a role which, if you’re familiar with the “Paradise Lost” trilogy, will likely take advantage of Durand’s penchant for playing smarmy villains. And lastly, character actor Rex Linn, who you may know from the cancelled “CSI: Miami” and Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming “southern” “Django Unchained,...
- 7/2/2012
- by Cain Rodriguez
- The Playlist
For anyone who has followed the story of the West Memphis Three over the past two decades or watched any of the Paradise Lost documentaries, it has been very interesting to see a narrative film based on the events slowly starting to take shape. Canadian director Atom Egoyan will be the first to tackle the subject as a feature, calling the story "a piece of American mythology." His film The Devil's Knot is still currently in the process of filling out the sizable cast, mixing A-list actors like Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon with unknowns like drama student James Hamrick, who landed the role of Damien Echols. Now this week they have found one of the other key pieces of the puzzle in casting John Mark Byers, father of one of the murdered boys and a one-time suspect in the murder. According to Variety, Canadian actor Kevin Durand will play Mark Byers,...
- 6/28/2012
- by Sean
- FilmJunk
If you are familiar with the story of the West Memphis 3, chances are it's because of the Paradise Lost film series. The trilogy of documentaries put a spotlight on the trial of James Baldwin, Jessie Misskelley Jr. and Damien Echols, and the second film in that series implicated John Mark Byers, the father of one of the murdered boys, as a possible suspect in the heinous killings. Now Variety tells us that Kevin Durand, who starred in "Lost" and Real Steel, is set to portray Byers in Atom Egoyan's upcoming Devil's Knot, which will bring the story to an even wider audience with names like Reese Witherspoon and Colin Firth attached. As of now, the story of the trial of James Baldwin, Jessie Misskelley Jr. and Damien Echols is best told in Amy Berg's documentary West of Memphis, which debuted at Sundance in January and is supposed to...
- 6/27/2012
- by Ben Pearson
- firstshowing.net
Swelter
Josh Henderson and Dermot Mulroney have joined the cast of Keith Parmer's indie psychological actioner "Swelter" which will begin shooting in August.
The story centers on four violent escaped prisoners arriving in a small dusty and sweltering California town in search of the fifth man who fled with over $10 million in cash. [Source: Variety]
Twelve Years a Slave
"Beasts Of The Southern Wild" star Dwight Henry has joined the cast of Steve McQueen's "Twelve Years A Slave" which is currently filming.
There is no word yet on what his role will be. Chiwetel Ejiofor, Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender, Scoot McNairy, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Giamatti, Paul Dano, Sarah Paulson and Garret Dillahunt also star. [Source: The Washington Post]
Devil's Knot
Kevin Durand ("Lost") has joined the cast of Atom Egoyan's "Devil's Knot" in the role of John Mark Byers, the father of one of the murdered children in the West Memphis Three case.
Josh Henderson and Dermot Mulroney have joined the cast of Keith Parmer's indie psychological actioner "Swelter" which will begin shooting in August.
The story centers on four violent escaped prisoners arriving in a small dusty and sweltering California town in search of the fifth man who fled with over $10 million in cash. [Source: Variety]
Twelve Years a Slave
"Beasts Of The Southern Wild" star Dwight Henry has joined the cast of Steve McQueen's "Twelve Years A Slave" which is currently filming.
There is no word yet on what his role will be. Chiwetel Ejiofor, Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender, Scoot McNairy, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Giamatti, Paul Dano, Sarah Paulson and Garret Dillahunt also star. [Source: The Washington Post]
Devil's Knot
Kevin Durand ("Lost") has joined the cast of Atom Egoyan's "Devil's Knot" in the role of John Mark Byers, the father of one of the murdered children in the West Memphis Three case.
- 6/27/2012
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
I can’t recall many films that have added as many actors over a short period as Devil’s Knot — it was, for God’s sake, just a few hours ago when the latest two people came aboard — and, finally, Atom Egoyan has begun to speak on his West Memphis 3 drama First, however, Variety informs us that Kevin Durand (Cosmopolis, Lost) is the newest participant; his role will be John Mark Byers, father to a victim who, having told reporters a “story [that] changed from his initial police statement,” became a suspect and, at one point, was even outright accused of committing the murders.
It goes without saying: Some dramatically potent stuff should arise from this onscreen presence, along with whatever Scott Derrickson and Paul Harris Boardman scripted. Durand is, in that case, a pretty good get, if I do say so myself. (And, having seen him in plenty over the years,...
It goes without saying: Some dramatically potent stuff should arise from this onscreen presence, along with whatever Scott Derrickson and Paul Harris Boardman scripted. Durand is, in that case, a pretty good get, if I do say so myself. (And, having seen him in plenty over the years,...
- 6/27/2012
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
Ever since the West Memphis Three were freed from prison last summer by entering Alford pleas, there have been a few different groups scrambling to retell their story on the big screen. Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky already followed the events quite exhaustively with their three Paradise Lost documentaries, but now that there is a definitive conclusion, at least three more adaptations have cropped up. Peter Jackson produced a documentary called West of Memphis that premiered at Sundance earlier this year, and there are now two competing fictional features in development: one directed by Atom Egoyan and the other apparently being produced by Johnny Depp. Egoyan's film, entitled The Devil's Knot, will likely be the first one out of the gate, and this week they have made a slew of casting announcements including their choices for the WM3 themselves. According to Variety, they finally locked down the key role of Damien Echols this week,...
- 6/15/2012
- by Sean
- FilmJunk
You probably know by now that the West Memphis 3 (Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley Jr. and Jason Baldwin) were released from prison after giving an Alford plea — a guilty plea but not admitting to the act and asserting innocence — in August. At the time directors Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky were locking up their third film on the WM3, Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory, when they heard the news of the surprise development and raced down to Arkansas. Unable to put the footage of the three being freed in the film before screening it at the Toronto International Film Festival, Berlinger and Sinofsky unveiled the new ending tonight at the New York Film Festival.
And adding to the excitement, Echols, Misskelley and Baldwin were on hand in their first public appearance since being freed.
For Berlinger and Sinofsky, screening at Nyff brings things full circle. As Berlinger noted before the screening, their...
And adding to the excitement, Echols, Misskelley and Baldwin were on hand in their first public appearance since being freed.
For Berlinger and Sinofsky, screening at Nyff brings things full circle. As Berlinger noted before the screening, their...
- 10/11/2011
- by Jason Guerrasio
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
With its third entry, the documentary series "Paradise Lost" earns its title: these films now constitute an epic tragedy of American injustice. The first film, "Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills," premiered in 1996; the second, "Paradise Lost 2: Revelations," debuted in 2000. Now "Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory" returns to the aftermath of the same horrific crime fifteen years later. Characters from all sides of the case -- investigators and prosecutors, victims and the accused -- reflect on who they were then and who they are now. Directors Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky cut back and forth between the past and the present. The addition of time adds scope, insight and poignancy to everything we see.
Berlinger and Sinofsky have been chronicling the case against Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley -- collectively known as the West Memphis Three -- since they were first arrested for the murders...
Berlinger and Sinofsky have been chronicling the case against Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley -- collectively known as the West Memphis Three -- since they were first arrested for the murders...
- 10/10/2011
- by Matt Singer
- ifc.com
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory Directed by: Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky Back in 1995, documentary filmmakers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky flew down to West Memphis, Arkansas, to cover a murder trial that they thought would represent the callousness of today's youth and the total deterioration of American values. Three teenagers had apparently decided to kill and decapitate three eight-year old boys on a whim. What they found, however, was something entirely different: a small town witch hunt, an incompetent justice system and mass hysteria. Despite a complete lack of physical evidence, Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Miskelly were convicted and thrown behind bars before they could scarcely comprehend what had happened to them. The resulting documentary Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills was a landmark film, not just because it told a story that was both gripping and shocking, but also because it started a movement.
- 9/15/2011
- by Sean
- FilmJunk
A little more than ten years ago, when they were finishing the second documentary in what turned out to be the Paradise Lost trilogy, directors Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky chose the title Paradise Lost: Revelations. In a way, though, they could have put that title on almost any one of the three films. For when you watch Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills (1996), or Paradise Lost: Revelations (2000), or the new chapter, Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory, which premiered this week at the Toronto Film Festival, what keeps you watching — what keeps you just about soldered to the...
- 9/14/2011
- by Owen Gleiberman
- EW - Inside Movies
You may or may not have heard about Johnny Depp's crusade. He has long been the most private of movie stars, but this Saturday night, he will break character when he appears on the CBS investigative news show 48 Hours Mystery to defend the West Memphis Three, who as teenagers were found guilty of the hideous 1993 murder of three 8-year-old boys in West Memphis, Arkansas. Depp joins a handful of other entertainers -- Eddie Vedder, Winona Ryder, the Dixie Chicks -- who claim that the convicted killers are innocent, and that they were railroaded for the crime because of their associations with heavy-metal music,...
- 2/24/2010
- by Owen Gleiberman
- EW.com - The Movie Critics
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