Brenda Spencer, the 16-year old school shooter who inspired the Boomtown Rats song of the title, is up for parole 25 years after killing two and injuring nine in 1979. During this process, the makers of this doc speak to her parents, those who were at the scene on the day and others who's lived have been touched by this tragedy.
While it was intiguing to hear especially from Brenda's nearest and dearest for the first time, the fact remains a lot of this is second hand info (apart from the allegations of parental abuse, which should naturally be treated with skepticism).
She comes across as a typical 'remorseful' inmate during her rejected appeal, who would've been released by now in almost any other country in the world... but in America's somewhat harsh prison regime, such a possibility is remote to say the least.
Whether this is a good or bad thing is up to the viewer. But what isn't up for debate is the less you know about this case, the more likely you are to enjoy it. Just don't watch it at the start of the week... 6/10.
While it was intiguing to hear especially from Brenda's nearest and dearest for the first time, the fact remains a lot of this is second hand info (apart from the allegations of parental abuse, which should naturally be treated with skepticism).
She comes across as a typical 'remorseful' inmate during her rejected appeal, who would've been released by now in almost any other country in the world... but in America's somewhat harsh prison regime, such a possibility is remote to say the least.
Whether this is a good or bad thing is up to the viewer. But what isn't up for debate is the less you know about this case, the more likely you are to enjoy it. Just don't watch it at the start of the week... 6/10.
