Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (2008)

For quite a while I've been hearing about this one. Usually from people who are rattling off some of their favorite documentaries - it typically ranks high amongst people's preferences - so I figured I should give it a chance. Luckily, I managed to avoid having the big "reveal" spoiled for me so I think I was able to get the full effect of what "Dear Zachary" was trying to elicit in its rollercoaster of misfortune, although I don't think I was 'rocked' to my core as most were. It IS a very tragic case and I found it very frustrating how a judicial system could fail a family so profoundly.

The less you say about this film, the better, so I'll keep it short. What basically happened was a 28-year old doctor (and the spitting image of Jack Black...) hooked up with some 40-year old whackjob cougar bitch who ended up killing him in a jealous rage after he broke it off with her. During the court proceedings, it turns out she is pregnant with his kid so, while the murdered man's parents are fighting for custody of the baby, an old friend of the dead man sets out to make this doc in order to pay tribute and also show the child what kinda guy his father was...

A shitload of absurd, fucked up interactions and events occur during the period of time this movie was being shot that paints a solid picture of the effects of loss and the helplessness the court system can so easily and callously administer on regular people. I always knew the Canadian government was based in intrinsic incompetency and assbackward laws and policies (not to say the U.S. is a well-oiled machine, by any fucking means...), but "Dear Zachary" shows just how bureaucratic entities exhibit corruption and complete ineptitude in protecting their citizens. How cries for justice can so plainly fall on deaf ears and actually work in favor of cold-blooded psychopaths. In many ways, "Dear Zachary" is a wake-up call to just how freely this can happen and how your door knob-sucking, ineffectual government is completely capable of turning a blind eye and disregarding the safety of it's people (including children...) until it's too late.

The doc is put together very well in detailing the family's relationship with one another and their reaction to these events. It thoroughly tackles each aspect of the ordeal and draws you in extremely well. It's depressing and exacerbating, but it IS definitely worth checking out.