The Case Against Adnan Syed (2019) User Reviews

The public's insatiable appetite and interest in the Syed murder case

[paul-allaer · 7/10 · 18 May 2020]

N 2014, a podcast called "Serial" went viral when doing its first season on the Adnan Syed murder case. Apparently it's been downloaded 175 million times. Think about that! That's more than half the country's population. Now 5 years later comes this 4 part documentary from HBO, in essence a visual rehash and update of the podcast. As the documentary opens, we get a short introduction as to the main persons involved in this matter, including 18 year old Hae Min Lee, who was brutally murdered in early 1999, 17 year old school mate (and ex-boyfriend) Adnan Syed, their respective families, and others. The attention of the Baltimore Police focuses quickly on Syed, a Pakistani American whose family is super-strict, but he himself is not.

Couple of comments: this documentary is written and directed by highly respected and long-time documentarian Amy Berg (whose 2006 "Deliver Us From Evil" was nominated for Best Documentary Oscar). The documentary is in 4 parts, and I have now seen 3 of the 4 parts (I'll watch the last part surely later this week). The documentary feels at times s bit heavy-handed, if not one-sided, at least through the initial 3 parts, mostly telling the story from Syed's and his lawyer's and family's perspective. Part 2 ("In Between the Truth") looks up close at the various testimonials. Because so many aspects and angles of the case come up, I admit that at times I lost track of certain things. It's not very often these days that one gets too much information! When Berg lets the Korean American family and Baltimore community speak their minds, it only reinforces how little attention is paid to them overall. One interesting item that came up a number of times is how the "Serial" podcast has impacted the people involved, even those just on the fringes (a HS classmate comments that she wishes she'd never gotten involved in the podcast).

Despite its flaws, I nevertheless found this pretty compelling viewing. I think one reason for the podcast's extraordinary success and now the strong ratings for this documentary is that the appetite from the public at large for a murder case in which we may never fully know what truly and really happened, is simply insatiable.

*UPDATE* I saw the 4th and final episode and it doesn't change my overall view of this documentary series: heavily tilted towards the Syed camp's view of events, but in the end we really don't know know what happened 20 years ago

The story of a messed up system

[TruthSeeker82 · 8/10 · 16 December 2020]

Regardless of whether Adnan is guilty or not, it's proven many times that the justice system is broken. Many people consider it as sacred but in reality, it's just a man made system and doesn't always become successful in delivering justice. It works on the ability of people to present the truth in order to serve justice, but people can be biased, easily manipulated, and influenced. This includes everyone in the justice system. The many innocent people, who were put in jail and later exonerated, and the people who were let go freely even though they were guilty, are the biggest proof of it. The system prefers the rich and powerful. If you have the money, you can hire the biggest lawyer with the biggest mouth, whether you are guilty or not, and that lawyer will try to manipulate the system to prove your innocence.

Did I Watch The Same Series?!

[Deana91 · 8/10 · 4 April 2019]

It seems that the majority of the reviews here are based on people who turned the show off within the first 10 minutes of the first episode, or after watching just the first episode and those who have heard the original podcast! But for people like me who have never heard the podcast or even the story before, I'm very glad I watched every minute of every episode! One reviewer here "The Jury Has Spoken: Guilty" goes off on Adnan's families religious beliefs saying "He killed his ex-girlfriend because he didn't have the guts to stand up to his parents and their medieval religious beliefs." Wait, what?! So none of us are or have been or know any other teenagers no matter what race they are or what religion their family practices in America has ever had to hide who they are dating because of their parents disapproval for one reason or another, this only happens to kids with Muslim parents?! The same reviewer then goes on to say "There was no mention in the series about the incident when his parents actually dragged him out of a dance at school because he was with a girl. This was when she decided to break away from him and his fanatically religious family." Wait, what?! Sorry you must not have kept watching because they absolutely DID mention the incident in this series and the girl was Hae Min Lee and her ACTUAL reaction was read from her own diary and his was given in the phone interviews. So thanks for reading her mind for everyone and giving your own opinion about how she felt about "his fanatically religious family." Which I'd like to add here that Hae Min Lee had many of her own family issues because of their Korean practices and values, so badly in fact that she never let ONE friend of hers past the front doorway of her home! As for Adnan and Hae breaking up, the friends closest to each of them said they broke up and got back together a couple of times, as teenagers often do and the last break up was in fact not after that particular dance! In fairness to that particular reviewer they do say "I'm not some ignorant bigot: I'm the polar opposite of that." Ummm wait, what?! How can you say that after saying that you believe Adnan's motive for murdering Hae Min Lee was "because he didn't have the guts to stand up to his parents and their "medieval religious beliefs"? Sorry double quotes definitely needed for that sentence! Even the horrid one-sided line of laser focus that Adnan was guilty by the Baltimore Homicide Detectives and Prosecutor Kevin Urick who actually dissuaded and misled Adnan's alibi witness Asia McClain for where he was at the time of the murder never even illuded to his parents religious beliefs as being the reason Adnan killed Hae Min Lee! For the record I am a white Caucasian female raised catholic, so believe me when I say many people can point at many young teenagers parent's religions and disagree or call them into question but that does not make 17 year olds turn to murder! BTW let's say for arguments sake there is know Asia McClain that swears under oath of perjury in a sworn affidavit saying she was with Adnan in the library at the time of the murder, I'd like to ask who decides to go to a parking lot of a busy business like Best Buy at 2:30pm in full daylight to strangle someone in a car and then place their dead body in the trunk of their car and there's not one witness or video surveillance showing anything? Jay Wilds says this was all premeditated by Adnan Syed and the police need him to say this to force their square peg in a round hole to make everything fit into their case against Adnan, but for everyone saying how smart this young man was, I can't believe even the dumbest of people would choose a busy parking lot in board daylight to murder someone in a car! Yes Adnan and Hae went to that same parking lot, but they only went there very late at NIGHT to make out! So if he did ask Hae to give him a ride home with the intention to kill her what reason would he have to talk her into driving to the Best Buy parking lot at 2:30pm and even if he did ask her to do that why would she comply when she needed to hurry to pick up her young cousins from school?!?! Now let's talk about the case that was based on 2 things! One man's testimony, Jay Wilds who changed his story too many times to count, and has his own close friends say multiple times "Jay lies about everything and especially if he could get himself out of trouble"! His FRIENDS say that! Then the second thing the case was based on was the cellphone records which the prosecutor conveniently left out the cover page from ATT saying "incoming calls could not be used as reliable data" when showing the records to their cellphone data expert they called to testify and when that gentleman was later given that information he wrote and signed a written and sworn affidavit recanting his testimony saying it was not accurate and would have been completely different had he'd been given the full report from ATT! Those two things Jay Wilds' testimony and the testimony regarding the cellphone records are what convicted Adnan Syed in the one and ONLY TRIAL he was given to be judged by his peers! Lets talk about things we do know as facts starting with the autopsy findings where the blood lividity shows Hae Min Lee died face forward or was strangled and immediately placed face forward fully prone on the ground with two large diamond shaped objects on her back and had to be left in that position for at least 8 to 10 hours after her death! Which means she could not have been strangled in her car then immediately placed in the trunk and then buried in the short period of time which is what Jay Wilds testified Adnan Syed did and said he assisted him in doing or that he said happened in his mix of so many different versions of those events! The autopsy also showed no other scratches, bruises or trauma of any kind on Lee's body which means she could not have been strangled in her car because in such a struggle in a small confined space the autopsy expert would expect to see some other kind of bruising or trauma on her body and there's zero physical evidence in the car showing it to be the place Hae was killed. We also know Asia McClain wrote letters to the family, Adnan, and then through an attorney stating the day and time Adnan was supposed to have killed Hae Min Lee she was with him at their school in the library and it's known right after that he was also at school for sports practice! We also now know she called and spoke to State's Prosecutor Kevin Urick who dissuaded and convinced her Adnan was guilty because of the overwhelming evidence they had against him including DNA evidence which was an outright lie because they had not even bothered to take any physical eveidence they had in police custody related to Hae Min Lee's murderer for DNA testing!!! Doesn't that strike anyone as downright criminal including Hae Min Lee's own family?! Then in turn Kevin Urick lies to others dissuading them to use Asia McClain's affidavit of her being with Adnan Syed during the time of Hae Min Lee's murder saying she told him she wrote the letter due to overwhelming pressure from Syed's family, which Asia herself says not only never happened she also had never told Kevin Urick it happened and "it made her sick to her stomach to think she could have helped this case so many years ago!" If everyone involved in this case including the bewildering attorney Thiruvendran Vignarajah that decided to stay on the case during the years of the appeals process even though he was just an attorney by then and no longer a DA which has never happened in any case before, really wanted justice for the victim HAE MIN LEE wouldn't EVERYONE want all pertinent evidence brought forward without lies or mistakes?! Full autopsy findings, the affidavit from Adnan Syed's alibi Asia McClain, Jay Wilds' friend Kristi Vinson's school records showing she was in class on the day of the murder meaning Jay and Adnan couldn't have been at her house the day of the murder which was very relevant to the State's case, the affidavit from the State's cellphone data expert recanting his testimony or more than anything else THE DNA FINDINGS THAT WAS FINALLY TESTED from Hae Min Lee's body, DNA found on the rope used to strangle her and the one fingerprint lifted from the rear view mirror in her car THAT DID NOT MATCH ADNAN SYED!!!! They also compared the fingerprint with the prints of 10 law enforcement officers that handled Hae Min Lee's car and there was no match! So to really get justice for Hae Min Lee don't we need to know who's DNA and fingerprint those belong to?! I don't know anyone in this case or involved in the making of this series, but it had me in turns, rivited, dumbfounded, shocked and disgusted! It did it's job of being a great documentary for a story I had never heard of before and seeing it has me thoroughly convinced justice for Hae Min Lee's murder has not been satisfied and a new trial should be given to Adnan Syed with all the real facts and evidence stated above presented! If he is found guilty in a new trial with all evidence and testimony shown as it really happened, that's more than fine by me, however if he is found innocent then there should be new detectives with fresh eyes and minds who specialize in old or cold cases given this case to give Hae Min Lee and her family the justice they deserve and the real murderer a conviction he or she deserves no matter who it is!!! Great documentary, that I can't give 10 stars to only because I don't believe 4 separate episodes were needed! Luckily that's what waiting and binge watching is for!

Biased, but raises serious issues and reasonable doubt

[susuchandler · 7/10 · 26 March 2019]

Mild spoiler: Rabia, an attorney and Syed family friend, was being interviewed about why she was not allowed in the court room for his appeal. I knew nothing about the case or series, but I could tell from her tone that something was "off". She was surprised and disappointed that she couldn't attend, which was enough to capture my interest.

The previews were useless and only convey that another athlete murdered his ex-girlfriend out of jealousy. They didn't give any indication that the goal, so far anyway, is to prove Syed's innocence.

Overall, the series is too long and unorganized. It would be much better between 2 and 3 hours. There is a lot of jumping around in the timeline, which is confusing and distracting. The skipping around requires too much unnecessary repetition.

The case and the way it was handled, along with the many questions raised, are enough for me to continue watching, but I'm disappointed by the length and lack of investigation into other suspects or theories. Rabia says "I'm only on one side and that side is getting to the truth. That is justice for Hae." Justice for Hae should be the ultimate goal of a series this long, but it seems to have gotten lost seeking justice for Syed.

Mediocre documentary, but a story worth retelling

[Thinker365 · 7/10 · 1 April 2019]

Writing a short review to counterbalance some of the more negative reviews (of the armchair detectives that happily pass judgement). Though, I do agree the documentary doesn't present the case particularly well, or their argument of the case's failures, and without Serial and Undisclosed, this documentary wouldn't receive any attention/acclaim, which is a pity.

I have no idea if Adnan is guilty, but what is clear is, that the police investigation, trial, and succeeding actions of the judicial system, have little interest in providing justice on the basis of evidence (which should be of concern to everyone). Is that due to it being an inconvenience, general incompetence or institutional corruption?

In any event, reviewers should look to the title of the documentary, and then consider whether the state made its case (based on information/evidence available) before offering their opinions. The documentary highlights that it didn't, though this could have been argued better.

Disjointed at best

[dti812 · 6/10 · 20 March 2019]

I was hooked after the first episode. A compelling story, for sure, but it doesn't flow that well. They give you the time line but then jump around. What do I know. The one thing that stuck out for me in episode 2 - the girl that claims she was in the library with him on that fatal day. Toward the end of the second episode she claims she never read about or followed the case. Really? You have potential evidence and all you did was stop by the kids house for "15 minutes and spoke to his relatives". Waiting for episode three not sure what I think as far as this boys guilt or innocence. The witnesses for the prosecution especially Jay Wilde and that Jennifer are sketchy at best. The show, as one might expect is biased toward his innocence. Reminds me of the far superior HBO mini series "The Night".

Wait for episode 2

[miljenko-gambiraza · 9/10 · 20 March 2019]

The first episode was somewhat slow and it is probably the reason for so many bad reviews. The second episode, though, it is much better with better pace and all of this contradictory information which make this case such a mystery

He Did It

[annette-pulliam · 7/10 · 24 April 2020]

I live in Woodlawn, Maryland and remember when this happened. I used to pass by Hae's house to visit my aunt. I listened to the Serial podcast. I believe Adnan did it. One thing has changed since viewing this documentary. I believe it was premeditated. Adnan manipulated Jay. Jay was his drug connection. Jay may not be a nice person but he was used by Adnan. Adnan planned to kill Hae and use Jay to move the body. I believe the police did pressure Jay to give the statement that they wanted. I always doubted she was killed in broad daylight at the Best Buy. A busy area with a McDonalds on the same side and a Burger King across the street. As for the girl who says she saw Jay in the library. That could be true. At first I had my doubts but she could have seen him on a different day. Memories are faulty. I find it hard to believe that Don was not investigated (according to the documentary) since he was the boyfriend currently seeing Hae. The guy who found the body is a red herring. Adnan didn't take the deal because he wants his supporters and family to believe the image they have of him. In jail is where he belongs. I feel for Hae's family and Adnan's supporters.

Biased documentary

[clloden · 2/10 · 19 March 2019]

If you are familiar with this story from Serial you will quickly notice the strong bias towards Adnans innocence and how conveniently they gloss over or totally leave out the items that point to his guilt. Too much time is spent on Rabia rather than focusing on the facts of the case.

Blown away!

[faiteahaghotu · 10/10 · 27 May 2019]

I do not usually write comments like these...

I was just flipping through my Sky boxsets (UK cable) and found this documentary TV series and was compelled to keep watching to the end. I immediately felt Adnan is innocent and I feel the justice system has let Adnan and Hae's family down completely.

After I finished watching the documentary series, I searched online to follow-up the court appeal hearing. To find out the court of appeals has denied a new trial, even when they said he was not given a fair trial because an alibi witness was not questioned, in consistencies in people's stories which unfortunately led to his conviction.

The Court of Appeals decision to deny him a second trial because they felt the new evidence wouldn't be suffice to alters the jury's decision is unjust and I feel it's their opinion but Adnan should have a second chance to present his evidence fairly in the court of law.

.

[safa-77378 · 7/10 · 17 June 2019]

I'm disappointed that the didn't get the depth that it deserves, mixed clips from here and there feels pretty shallow. I mean they could've put more seriousness into it.

More Serial but biased.

[chantakrivat · 3/10 · 26 March 2019]

Incredibly one sided information that doesnt have the same professionaliam and objectivity as Serial. Its great hearing more about this case and putting faces to the voices, but i feel like this was a wasted opportunity to give another unbiased accounting of the story. Instead this feels like propoganda to help exonerate Anand.

Is he not guilty or just didn't get a fair trial??

[crtant3 · 6/10 · 16 January 2022]

I expected this doc to be about the innocence or guilt of Adnan like The Staircase but instead found myself going down a rabbit hole as to whether or not he received a fair trial. The farter it goes the more it seems like he did it but was railroaded by a corrupt cast of prosecutors seeking re-election and not the truth.

Shame On All Who Blame Adnan STILL

[helenahandbasket-93734 · 6/10 · 22 February 2023]

Knowing what we know now? Shame on every single person who left a review stating Adnan was where he belonged/the murderer.

Now that ACTUAL DNA evidence completely exonerates him, and what this series (in my opinion does poorly) tries to do is cast reasonable doubt upon him as the person guilty for her demise.

There's a reason the Baltimore County prosecutor has joined with the defense to completely dismiss and vacate, and a strong argument against the death penalty. An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.

That Jays story was every taken seriously, knowing that Ritz (initial detective involved) was found guilty of several different kinds of misconduct (prosecutorial, exculpatory, fabrication) in another case the same year as this one, only reiterates the fault in Wilds' testimony.

Not a great series but hits many of the points those who so firmly believed in his guilt should have been paying attention to.

Makes you think..

[am121165 · 10/10 · 27 March 2019]

Jay Wilds is looking out for number one, himself.. Jennifer P has fried her brain. The idea that she was spoon fed the answer is outstanding to me. She got her 15 minutes of fame!

Drawn out waaaaaay longer than it needed to be

[amy317317 · 6/10 · 14 November 2022]

I am a very avid documentary and true crime watcher.

I'm not sure why this is reviewed so positively by critics and considered such a triumph.

First this doc is drawn our way longer than it needed to be. This could have been three episodes.

For example they go over and over whether something happened on a certain day when it is CLEAR witnesses are not going to agree and will always contradict each other.

Also how much of a total idiot do you have to be to play up the fact that you're Muslim in jail and court? We KNOW that there is a HUGE prejudice against that religion. Der

Bottom line: I think he totally did it but not in the cold blooded way they assume. I think he got in a fight/argument w the victim that went too far and he killed her in a crime of passion. Also the film makers of this doc did it such a disservice with WAY too many people who didn't really matter and dragging it out.

Doesn't deserve the praise it's gotten imo.

Baltimore police and State Prosecutor need to review this case again

[ammarshk · 10/10 · 30 April 2019]

This documentary is biased towards Adnan but it raises key issues that nonetheless were missed. Its a fact that there was proprietorial and police misconduct in this case. Whether he did it or not, he deserves a new trial.

If you're looking for balance and objectivity, don't waste your time

[marissaland-24172 · 5/10 · 18 March 2019]

Early Serial podcast listeners will likely notice a marked difference, in that this documentary is shaped in favor of Adnan's innocence. If you go into this series knowing that his devoted advocate, Rabia Chaudry, was one of the producers (at least according to online searches as of the date of this post), you'll likely have a better sense of what to expect, and still be extremely interested. Adnan could very well be innocent. Just don't expect to get a balanced perspective from this documentary. That said, I applaud Rabia for her perseverance in getting massive exposure and scrutiny for Adnan's case. May the truth win in the end.

HBO documentaries are the best

[kmdharden · 10/10 · 11 March 2019]

And even tho this is just the first episode, I think that Adnan is innocent and that the guy that she was dating at the time of her murder, is probably the one that did it.

Serial fans, don't waste your time

[shaunnadimaio · 1/10 · 20 March 2019]

This documentary is just plain awful. Poorly organized, choppy, unclear and extremely biased. The story itself is worth hearing, but do so on the podcast rather than waste your time with this. Just doesn't do it justice at all. Such a disappointment!

The society we live in...

[mehnaazs · 8/10 · 4 April 2019]

It just shows how messed up the legal system is :( keeping his family in my prayers

Heartbreaking

[thmhenry · 10/10 · 16 December 2020]

Heartbreaking in every way! A look at how flawed and corrupt our judicial system is.

Ordinary

[jason-617-546047 · 4/10 · 11 March 2019]

Disappointing. Was eagerly waiting for this to watch. Sadly it was not worth the wait. Poor camerawork. Cheesy music/sfx. Cheap animations. Lazy phone I/V with Adan. And distasteful re-enactment V/O for Hae. It's always easy to be the armchair critic however the sleights of this doco are all valid. Peace

Wasted Opportunity.

[mrsean-1 · 4/10 · 18 March 2019]

Definitely not up to the high standard one expects from HBO. The producers seem preoccupied with making the doco "entertaining". The fancy graphics, the animation, and the editing, all distract. It's ultimately a wasted opportunity to present the case in a clear, considered and constructive way, for the benefit of both those who are for or against Adnan Syed.

Dragging out a story that has been told a million times before, by a million other mediums, makes it boring and uninspired.

There is also one inexcusable misrepresented fact: "Because of new evidence unearthed after SERIAL, Adnan Syed has been granted an appeal". Unless I'm mistaken, this new evidence came about through the "Undisclosed Podcast", specifically through the hard work and legal acumen of lawyer Susan Simpson. While this new evidence was unearthed "after Serial", the statement gives false credit to that podcast.