The opening episode is, perhaps deliberately, misleading. We have a young filmmaker (whose talent becomes evident as the film stretches over several years) making a movie--perhaps a class assignment--about his family. A family where his mother was brutally murdered when he was 18 years old. It's understandable that a young filmmaker would focus on what is most important to him. It is unusual that it turns out that his mother's unsolved murder would be his choice. Few families have such material at hand. And slowly, and cunningly, as details of what appears to be a family living the American dream of privilege despite a divorce, there's a dark center that's revealed more and more with each episode. The construction of the film is masterful. It would be interesting to know why the filming stops from time to time. Is it too painful? Are the revelations that are uncovered (for the audience) too threatening? But we're lucky Madison Hamburg returns to his camera and the story. He's made a sensational documentary about some very "layered" individuals who just happen to be his relatives.
It's not important that the audience shifts (often quickly) about who might be murderer. The crime scene indicates "passion" and "shame" over the killing. But when a close family member reveals she's sought out a "hitman" as well as other sensational facts that shift suspicion--convincingly and dramatically--propelling the film to its next even more sensational episode.
HIs mother is not simply a "lady who lunches." Although she does but with a very sinister twist. Yet all those interviewed seem to be making an effort to be sincere due to their love for the victim and the filmmaker. The veneer everyone presents is very convincing. Then that's exploded by the next interview. The police (surreptitiously taped) become frustrating in the casual pursuit of the solving the crime. It all puts the viewer in a state of conflict since we're used to looking for the one "bad guy" who committed the crime. We're given a very clear picture of some very flawed people who are trying their best to move on.
