Devil’s Knot
Director: Atom Egoyan
Starring: Colin Firth, Reese Witherspoon, Stephen Moyer
114 mins; Class 15; KRS Releasing Ltd
Devil’s Knot is a dramatised account of the events which, in May 1993 in the US, saw three teenagers arrested, tried, and found guilty of the brutal murders of three eight-year-old boys.
The case of the West Memphis Three, as it was known, developed notoriety over the years as more and more people came to believe that the three convicted murderers – 17-year-old Jessie Misskelley, Jr, 18-year-old Damien Echols and 16-year-old Jason Baldwin – were in fact innocent.
Their arrest and convictions were thought to be the results of sloppy investigations by a police force desperate to bring someone to justice despite the lack of hard evidence.
Devil’s Knot tackles the story from the point of view of two of the protagonists of the case. Colin Firth stars as Ron Lax, a local private investigator who offers his services to the legal team working on the defence of the three accused. Reese Witherspoon stars as Pam Hobbs, the grieving mother of Stevie, one of the murdered boys.
Despite its fascinating true life origins, Devil’s Knot is surprisingly lacklustre; lacking in the drama and the emotion one would expect from such a remarkable story.
It is ponderous in its storytelling, heavy on facts and likewise onerous in its narrative. Despite solid performances from the bulk of the cast, overall, the characterisation is so shallow there is little that allows us to empathise with the protagonists.
Surprisingly lacklustre; lacking in drama and emotion
Firth and Witherspoon struggle for their characters to truly resonate. At the beginning of the film, Firth’s character actually believes the three are guilty. He only offers his services as he is an opponent of the death penalty sought by the prosecution in the case. Yet, his coming round to the idea that they may actually be innocent is very thinly sketched.
Witherspoon succeeds in channelling a mother’s grief, especially when Pam realises her child is dead. But little time is spent with the character as her doubts similarly increase as to the true perpetrators of the crime.
A sub-plot in which her suspicions fall on someone close to her is never developed, leaving it to the final captions as the film ends to fill in the blanks.
The case of the West Memphis Three is a story that captured the imagination of the public over the years. Numerous books have been written about it and four documentaries, including the critically-acclaimed West of Memphis produced by director Peter Jackson, have been made.
Myriad celebrities have been involved in projects aimed at raising awareness about the plight of the three men. What prompted this feature film is unclear, but given its blandness, it seems a little superfluous.