82
Metascore
11 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100PremierePremiereMasterfully put together.
- 90New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinNew York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinAmong the most enraging (documentaries) I've ever seen, and while it's fine and heartfelt and I commend it to those of you with strong constitutions, it is the film that has finally broken me.
- An undeniably shattering story, if forgivably shaky in its impassioned, therapeutic unfolding.
- You can't help getting emotionally involved, and as the central outrage -- a case of judicial negligence that would seem unbelievable in a work of fiction -- plays out, you feel the pain and anger that Bagby's family and friends experienced. Then the story takes a final, horrible twist that's almost too much to endure.
- 80Village VoiceVillage VoiceKuenne lovingly assembles home-movie footage and new interviews, while deftly borrowing a narrative trick from fiction--the plot twist--to create a true-crime story so gripping, devastating, and ultimately unforgettable that it easily trumps any thriller Hollywood has to offer this year.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterSheri LindenThe Hollywood ReporterSheri LindenWithout becoming a screed for victims' rights, the riveting film shows how in the face of terrible events a grieving parent is galvanized into activism.
- 80The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenIt is impossible not to be fired up by Kurt Kuenne's incendiary cri de coeur, Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father.
- 75New York PostLou LumenickNew York PostLou LumenickA gut-wrenching experience.
- 67Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumEntertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumThe facts are so awful that Dear Zacharycan be forgiven much of its antsiness--as a memorial, as a condolence to Bagby’s parents (who became activists for judicial reform in their late son's honor), and as a howl of grief.
- 50VarietyVarietyThe way Kuenne presents the material, with an aggressive style that lingers less than a second on most shots, it's impossible not to feel emotionally exhausted.