Death Row

So in the last episode an overweight half step away from a redneck explains how the film The Exorcist was real. Needless to say, Herzog has chosen his topic well. Never preachy, always inquisitive, he really let the topic speak for itself. Very interesting and at eight 40 minute episodes, each with its own twists and turns, it never over stays its welcome and constantly brings something new to the table.

Effective presentation of the bizarrely distorted world of death row, the distorted personalities who subsist there, and the distorted way they think about themselves and the events of their lives. And further documentation supporting a thesis on the strangeness of America.

How much more black could it be? First time I saw Herzog really struggling with his subject. Also, it's decidedly televisual. Still contains those weird dynamics unique to him. One minute you're staring into a Nietzschean abyss and next you're being ripped to pieces by human emotion.

Another great documentary by Herzog.

Harrowing, insightful and thought-provoking. With its attention paid to minute details, it's able to really dig into these people and these cases, and it makes for some magnetic stuff. Herzog remains relatively distant, only asking questions to draw further insight into facts about the crimes, the people, and life on death row. We know Herzog is against capital punishment, but he doesn't preach. He sits, listens, and reflects on a system that essentially proclaims that two wrongs make a right.

Actually quite touching. I'm against death sentence; it's just so unhumane. Even though the people in the series are not innocent at all, I just don't think they deserved to be 'put down' like some dog. They're still humans

Just really interesting stuff, partially because of the subject matter (who doesn't like this true crime shit?) and partially because Herzog is interesting AND knows what questions to ask. While he starts every episode telling you what he thinks, he mostly lets the people interviewed present their cases. Occasionally he makes a remark but it's so fun to hear him talk that it's okay. There is emotional depth here, and the element of "who's telling the truth?" is appealing.