Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father

To start off, it should be mentioned that the actual construction of this film is done masterfully. From the use of repetition to suspense to absolute vastness of material and the appropriate and tasteful conjoining of that material, Dear Zachary is an excellent documentary. We begin with the murder of the father (mentioned in the title). His suspected killer is now pregnant with his son: Zachary. The film chronicles the attempt to put his killer in jail and keep Zachary safe. The intent of the film (at first) is to show the mass of people that cared for the murdered man. The filmmaker wishes to then present the film as a sort of gift to Zachary (who would never know his father). Plans go astray, for during the making of the film, some horrendous things happen. The greatness of Dear Zachary is in its construction, what occurs within it is awful, except for the love of the relatives and the perseverance of the murdered man's parents. Dear Zachary is a great documentary.
Dear Zachary: ✰✰✰✰