"The Laramie Project" is based on a play by the same name written in response to the vicious and senseless 1998 murder of 21 year-old Matthew Shepherd, a gay man living in the town of Laramie, Wyoming.
The movie (and play) is not about the murder per se. Everything is set after those events. Instead, the focus is on the reaction of the townspeople to becoming the centre of attention because of this brutal murder. Filmed largely in a documentary style, the bulk of the "story" is told through a series of interviews conducted by those doing the research for the play with the locals. We see the whole range of feelings expressed. Some who hate gays; some who don't hate them but believe the lifestyle to be wrong; some who truly don't care one way or the other; and then there are those who are themselves gay. As we go through this whole range of responses to Matthew's death the movie is sometimes inspiring and sometimes distressing.
If you're looking for the gory details of the murder itself, you won't find them here - thankfully. The story is told in words, but the murder is never recreated or sensationalized in any way. The focus stays on the townspeople, and at the end we see the two accused - played by Mark Webber and Garrett Neergaard - as they react to their respective trials. The interview style adopted through most of the movie means that there isn't a lot of "excitement" in the conventional sense, but it is fascinating to see the various reactions to the murders. (The interviewees, of course, were actors playing the parts of the townspeople; perhaps the only thing that would have made the movie more "raw" would have been interviews of the actual townspeople.)
It's a good movie - thought-provoking if not exactly exciting - and certainly worth watching. Don't miss the powerful victim impact statement read to the court by Matthew's father Dennis (Terry Kinney.) Although he's seen throughout the trial scenes sitting in the courtroom, this was Kinney's only speaking part of the movie and he made the most of it, vividly portraying the pain and anger of a father at the murder of his only son.
It's definitely worth watching. 7/10
The movie (and play) is not about the murder per se. Everything is set after those events. Instead, the focus is on the reaction of the townspeople to becoming the centre of attention because of this brutal murder. Filmed largely in a documentary style, the bulk of the "story" is told through a series of interviews conducted by those doing the research for the play with the locals. We see the whole range of feelings expressed. Some who hate gays; some who don't hate them but believe the lifestyle to be wrong; some who truly don't care one way or the other; and then there are those who are themselves gay. As we go through this whole range of responses to Matthew's death the movie is sometimes inspiring and sometimes distressing.
If you're looking for the gory details of the murder itself, you won't find them here - thankfully. The story is told in words, but the murder is never recreated or sensationalized in any way. The focus stays on the townspeople, and at the end we see the two accused - played by Mark Webber and Garrett Neergaard - as they react to their respective trials. The interview style adopted through most of the movie means that there isn't a lot of "excitement" in the conventional sense, but it is fascinating to see the various reactions to the murders. (The interviewees, of course, were actors playing the parts of the townspeople; perhaps the only thing that would have made the movie more "raw" would have been interviews of the actual townspeople.)
It's a good movie - thought-provoking if not exactly exciting - and certainly worth watching. Don't miss the powerful victim impact statement read to the court by Matthew's father Dennis (Terry Kinney.) Although he's seen throughout the trial scenes sitting in the courtroom, this was Kinney's only speaking part of the movie and he made the most of it, vividly portraying the pain and anger of a father at the murder of his only son.
It's definitely worth watching. 7/10