Mommy Dead and Dearest (2017)

Fantastic!

If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

I feel so bad for Gypsy! I do not understand how she slipped through so many cracks! How could these idiot doctors do these treatments and surgeries on this child without seeing the medical evidence; making them necessary! I just don't get it! I am more angry at the doctor that said she was a victim of Munchausen by proxy but did not do his duty, as far as, getting her away from her mother immediately!She suffered 20 years of abuse and imprisonment! I totally agree with her grandmother! She paid in advance for this crime and should be set free. I believe that if this was taken to trial, she would be free. I wish her nothing but the best for the rest of her life. Maybe by some miracle, Dr. Phil can help her start living sooner than later. The lawyers, the prosecutors, and the judge are complete morons in this case! Hasn't she suffered enough!?Yes, she did take part in murdering her mother! But a better turn of events would have been the doctor protecting her while her mother rotted in prison! Because EVERYONE failed this child, she really had no other way out! God bless you Gypsy!

Profoundly disturbing and at the same time, oddly moving, Mommy Dead and Dearest chronicles one of the strangest mother/daughter relationships on record, ultimately leading to a shocking murder. The most amazing thing about this film is that the story is told by the actual participants in the murder — and presented in a pastiche of selfies, taped police interrogations, surveillance video, and prison interviews, making the viewer feel almost as if they are present as the crime is committed and in its immediate aftermath. Unlike so many of today's documentaries, this one eschews the endless drone shots flying over the scene of the crime, the lingering but meaningless long shots of empty streets and wilting flowers. The focus is 100% on the principals of the story. The editing is lean and clean. This is documentary filmmaking at its finest.

Documentaries, when done well, are like great theater. Count "Mommy Dead and Dearest" among one of the best ever made. It also doesn't hurt that the filmmakers have an unbelievable fascinating story to work with."Gypsy Rose" sounds like a name for the title character in some form of art. But the story of her life is a tale best left for nightmares.Just when you think that there is nothing else that could horrify or surprise you, along comes a story that turns that on its head.It is going to take me a lifetime to forget what I just watched. I also now have a new added skepticism of or society, legal and justice system- all of which dropped the ball here.Sometimes the worse solution may end up being the only solution.

Truly one of the best true crime documentaries I have seen lately. This is not your normal true crime case. It's very well presented by the filmmakers and will cause many mixed emotions as you learn the whole story behind it. I don't want to give away anything for those who don't know the case, but just know that it is just as heartbreaking as it is horrific.