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Trials Of Darryl Hunt (The)
R1 - America - ThinkFilm Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak (30th October 2007). |
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The Film
 Racism is illogical and emotional, therefore facts don't matter? Larry Little (Long-time supporter of Hunt. Former alderman) Racism is nothing new, especially when we're talking about the 'supposed' blindness of the law, and black people being targeted and profiled for crimes is nothing that's surprising anymore. But it should be. In 1984 Darryl Hunt, an African-American man from Winston-Salem, North Carolina was charged and convicted of raping and murdering a local newspaper reporter…a white woman. Deborah Sykes was brutally and unjustly taken away from her loved ones. Equally unjust was the wrongful conviction of Hunt, an innocent man who spent nearly 20 years of incarceration trying to prove this fact. Over the years Hunt had amassed a group of loyal supporters that included community leaders and lawyers working effortlessly to help free this man. This film focuses on three major threads: Hunt's case, the people helping him and finally hearing from Hunt himself (who on the outside seems like a genuinely calm and peaceful person). The case was a mess from the start, over the course of the film you'll see the incompetence of the police department's investigation such as important leads that were not followed, DNA samples not tested, and utilizing witnesses that were not credible: a man who was identified as the 911 caller had a criminal history, one eye-witness was a Ku Klux Klan member and another was a drugged out 14-year-old prostitute that according to psychiatric reports had a hard time telling the difference between fantasy and reality. Shocking isn't it? But this was not only allowed to carry on but matters were further complicated with the fact that the defense attorney's assigned to the Hunt case never tried a murder trial (The first trial, subsequent appeals were tried by other lawyers). Want more to boil your blood, how about this: the Winston-Salem Police Department was clearly racist in the handling of this case and motivated a virtual lynching-by-trail that sealed Hunt's fate then and there (oh yeah, 11 of the 12 jurors were white!). The film paints a painfully clear picture that racism was a major factor in this case; it's the driving force of the documentary. The unjust treatment and conviction was a product of racism, however, and this is a big however, the actual person that committed the crime also happened to be African-American. So does this make it a case of racism or profiling? The film leans in one direction and avoids the conflict of either/or which does place the film in a slightly off-balance position. After all documentary films do push an agenda and filmmakers Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg have created a very effect piece of advocacy cinema that does engage. The filmmakers stuck by their subjects for a decade, piecing the events together with the use of interviews with key people involved, however more from the prosecution is required to form a general understanding of their motivations political, societal or otherwise (there was certainly pressure to convict this man) I also found that the outright refusal of participation from the Winston-Salem Police Department ended up being more harmful to them and as a result the impact of the film is strengthened. Archival news and courtroom footage, photographs and newspaper articles covering the case are also used to put together a timeline of events. The matter-of-fact structure of the film is crafted with simplistic precision and is always absorbing, especially the drama of having to go through several trials leading up to the Supreme Court over nearly 20-years will anger most viewers. If anything it will damage any faith you once had in the legal system but more importantly it will move you and as the final outcome is unfolded and Hunt is finally freed (after DNA evidence is used to find the real person behind the crime) you may actually find yourself quietly cheering for the happy ending-finally.
Video
Presented in a widescreen ratio of 1.78:1 this anamorphic transfer is a solid effort but as with most documentaries don't expect the archival footage to look the best. The newly recorded interviews appear clear, without any dirt or grain, the image is sharp and colors are finely balanced with natural skin tones and deep blacks. As mentioned before the archival footage is a bit rough, occasionally soft and lacking detail. Overall it's a good transfer and is in a presentable fashion.
Audio
Two audio tracks are included in English Dolby Digital 5.1 as well as a track in English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, for the purposes of this review I chose to view the film with its 5.1 track. You don't normally associate documentaries with full 5.1 surround sound but in this case the surround tracks makes a welcomed addition adding depth to the rich score for the film while the focus on the dialogue is very centre heavy. The 5.1 track creates an immersive quality although there does appear to be some separation problems with the mix that can take you out of the film momentarily. Otherwise it's a fine 5.1 mix.
Extras
First up we've got a series of 4 bonus interviews, these can be viewed individually or with a Play All function and include: - "Darryl Hunt - Reflection" runs for 3 minutes 23 seconds, Hunt talks about spending more than half his life in prison and having to adjust to freedom. - "Mark Rabil - The Case" runs for 4 minutes 24 seconds as Rabil comments on dealing with his wife's cancer and how that was similar in dealing with Hunt's case as they were both "confronting the end". - "Larry Little - Malcolm X & Community Support" runs for 2 minutes 9 seconds, Little comments on introducing Hunt to the writing of Malcolm X and the impact it has on him. - "Barry Scheck - DNA & Hunt on a National Scope" runs for 4 minutes 22 seconds as he comments on post-conviction DNA testing and the significance of it. Following that is an HBO featurette: "Exclusive Interview with Regina Lane" which runs for 23 minutes 14 seconds, Lane was another rape victim some 6 months after Sykes was raped and murdered, the attack was similar to that of Sykes but the Police ignored the connection. Lane painfully recounts the attack and her struggle to get free from her rapist and potential murderer who in fact turned out to also be Sykes' real rapist and murderer. Also included is the film's original theatrical trailer which runs for 2 minutes 29 seconds. Rounding out the extras are some bonus trailers for: - "In the Shadow of the Moon" which runs for 2 minutes 30 seconds. - "Ghosts of City Soleil" which runs for 2 minutes 25 seconds. - "The Boys of Baraka" which runs for 3 minutes 8 seconds. - "The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till" which runs for 2 minutes 8 seconds. - "Born into Brothels" which runs for 2 minutes 27 seconds.
Overall
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