The 2020 Tribeca Film Festival is on hold because of the coronavirus - what isn't? Luckily, I have access to at least some of the festival's films, so when they become available, you'll know how to react.
Sabrina Van Tassel is a French-American film director and a journalist who has tackled some dark and heavy topics, all in documentary form. "The State of Texas vs. Melissa" continues in the same vein.
It's a story we've heard far too often: a person goes to prison for something they didn't do. It usually involves a crooked prosecutor. We have that here, along with an incompetent defense. That's not a hopeful formula for the accused.
The convicted is Melissa Lucio, the first Hispanic woman ever sentenced to death in Texas. She has been on Death Row for over a decade and is one appeal away from being executed.
She is accused of killing Mariah, her two-year-old daughter, who died from blunt-force head trauma. In the first scene we see her seemingly confessing. Later we find out that there's much more to the story. Melissa has 14 children and none of the others have showed signs of abuse nor have any of them ever alleged it.
This documentary is methodical and contains enough of a tale. The only problem with it is not the fault of the director or anyone else. Sadly, my only issue with it is that it seems so familiar, because it is. After you watch countless documentaries where the participants on the government side screw up by incompetence, or more likely with malice aforethought, you start to get numb. That's almost as sad as what Melissa is going through personally.
| Movie title | The State of Texas vs Melissa |
|---|---|
| Release year | 2020 |
| MPAA Rating | NR |
| Our rating | |
| Summary | This documentary about the plight of a woman on Death Row is depressing not only for its subject matter but also because it's one of a thousand similar tales. |
