RyothChatty ridiculous rating

Freaktana A Major Disappointment

Taraparain Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Payno I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Michael Ledo This is a well constructed documentary concerning the highly publicized shooting and killing of teen Jordan Davis by Michael David Dunn. This took place November 23, 2012 in Jacksonville, Florida and had deep implications. Dunn claimed self defense under the stand your ground law as tensions ensued over the playing of loud rap music.The themes included seeded racism and distrust. Stand Your Ground is the new Jim Crow which allows whites to shoot blacks because they feel threatened by them and how can a jury determine how one feels? This documentary pieced together actual statements and trial footage. I don't recall any re-enactment. The testimony is done in pieces in order to present a chronological order of events. Dunn's side of the issue is also presented, but keep in mind the intent of the film was not to exonerate him."In "Race, law, and health: Examination of 'Stand Your Ground' and defendant convictions in Florida," researchers Nicole Ackermann, Melody S. Goodman, Keon Gilbert, Cassandra Arroyo-Johnson, and Marcello Pagano combed through data from a Tampa Bay Times investigation. They further examined the 204 cases in the state in which Stand Your Ground was cited as a defense against homicide or some other violent act and the results were, sadly, not surprising. The study found that in cases argued from 2005 to 2013, juries were twice as likely to convict the perpetrator of a crime against a white person than against a person of color. "These results are similar to pre-civil rights era statistics, with strict enforcement for crimes when the victim was white and less-rigorous enforcement with the victim is non-white," the researchers report." Guide: F-bomb.

Paul Allaer "3 1/2 Minutes Ten Bullets" (2015 release; 98 min.) is a documentary about the "loud music" incident at a Jacksonville gas station in 2012, where a middle-aged white guy ends up shooting at 4 male black teenagers in a car playing loud music, and killing one of them. Upon his arrest, he claims that he was "standing his ground", as defined under Florida law. But was he? Couple of comments: this documentary tackles a super-interesting case from the legal perspective (disclaimer: I am a lawyer myself, although my practice is NOT in criminal law or doing court trials). The lawyer defending the shooter zeros in on it when he addresses the jury: "these are the elements of the Florida "stand your ground" law. You may or may not like that law, but that is irrelevant. Your duty is to apply the elements of that law." The amazing thing is that the jury does apply the law correctly in the end. What is not so amazing, and in fact is quite disappointing, is that this is not an "objective" documentary. It is pretty clear from the get-go where the documentary makers stand in their beliefs. This should've been a riveting documentary and while certain parts of it are (in particular the court scenes), it is not enough (for me, anyway).I recently stumbled on this documentary while browsing the Documentary section of HBO On Demand. Glad I checked it out, even though as already mentioned, the documentary is not even-handed. But the legal case itself is worth checking out.

amoscow74 The facts of 17 year old Jordan Davis' death are well known.While at a gas station with friends in Jacksonville Florida, he was shot dead by a middle aged white male who took offence to the loud Rap music the kids were playing in their car.What is less well known is the truth.Did Jordan verbally threaten to kill the man? Did he brandish a weapon of his own? Did he then leave his car in order to kill him?Vitally, did Michael Dunn, Jordan's killer, act in self defence?These are the questions explored by Marc Silver's excellent documentary. Never heavy handed, the film tells the story of the aftermath of Jordan's death and its affect on the family as they embark on a 2 year journey to find justice for their lost son.But far more than a personal family story, the film lifts the lid on America's trigger finger, the bubbling undercurrent of racial hate and the absurd 'stand your ground' law that essentially protects gun totting yahoos like Michael Dunn, from paying for their hate crimes.I was lucky enough to be at a special screening, where both Marc and Jordan's father, Ron Davis spoke about the making of the film.Ron is an amazing man. While certainly distraught following the loss of his son, he has also been galvanised into action. He is on a mission to amend the 'stand your ground' law and ensure that no more families have to suffer the tragedy that has befallen his.Eloquent and self assured, the events of Black Friday have transformed him into a powerful activist who I am sure will achieve his goals.Go watch this film for the excellent story telling. Go see it for the beautiful cinematography. Go see it for the raw emotion and performances - none of the scenes have been set up for our entertainment. We see every player in this tragic drama as they really are.But most of all just go see it because Ron Davis, Jordan's Mother, Lucia and all the other families affected by this terrible law need and deserve your understanding and support.

dawoudbey This is a powerful and deeply moving documentary about a subject that continues to plaque America: the demonization of young black men and the subsequent deadly actions taken against them, both by private citizens and law enforcement.Excellently shot and edited, the film is a courtroom drama. We already know the outcome--if you had been following the case--but the filmmakers flesh out the human dimension of the murdered youth, 17-year old Jordan Davis. Through riveting scenes in the courtroom and heartbreaking conversations with his parents and friends we get a sense of what was so mindlessly lost when this young man was murdered. Though the murderer is ultimately convicted, the film makes it clear that there is no "closure" when a life is so quickly and callously taken.This important film challenges all of us to continue to see the humanity in each other...especially those who have been historically demonized, marginalized and stereotyped.