Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father
Oscilloscope Pictures | Release Date: October 31, 2008 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
82
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 11 Critic Reviews
Positive:
10
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
50
VarietyPeter Debruge
The 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. Read full review
80
Village VoiceMartin Tsai
Kuenne 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. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
The 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. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterSheri Linden
Without becoming a screed for victims' rights, the riveting film shows how in the face of terrible events a grieving parent is galvanized into activism. Read full review
80
The New York TimesStephen Holden
It 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. Read full review
75
New York PostLou Lumenick
A gut-wrenching experience. Read full review
90
New York Magazine (Vulture)David Edelstein
Among 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. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesRobert Abele
An undeniably shattering story, if forgivably shaky in its impassioned, therapeutic unfolding. Read full review
83
Portland OregonianStan Hall
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. Read full review
100
PremiereJenni Miller
Masterfully put together. Read full review
90
Film ThreatScott Mendelson
The film's overall result is a document of towering, devastating emotional impact. Read full review
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