So Netflix is back with another banger, yet gripping documentary. This time, all eyes are on Jussie Smollett. Right at the start of the documentary, Former Chief of Detectives, Chicago Police, Melissa Staples makes it clear that this is the first and last time she is ever going to set the record straight on this case. Now that statement makes you even more intrigued as to what is so sensational about Jussie Smollett. Some of you might remember, some of you may not. So let’s brush up on our memories.
Back in 2019, on 29th January, Frank Gatson called the Chicago Police to report an assault. He takes them inside the apartment, where the police find Smollett with a noose around his neck. From here, we meet the man himself, Smollett, who appears on our screens and narrates his version of the story. He says he landed in Chicago at wee hours of the night, and since there was no food in the apartment, he went out to Walgreens to purchase something. While coming back from making his purchase, he heard someone call him the “N” word. He turned to confront, and the assaulter replied This is a 'MAGA country” and punched him right on his face. Apparently, their faces were covered, with just their eyes visible.
Once the assault was done, Smollett saw a rope around his neck. Clearly, this was a case of a hate crime. With so much already going on in the country, the police didn’t want another case like this to grab the headlines. The detectives, wasting no time, sprang into action and checked all the cameras. But despite screening so many videos, there was no evidence of the assault as described by Smollett. Jussie was even wary of sending his phone records to the police as he didn’t want the world to know about his drug use. And for a while in the film, we only see the police saying that they didn’t find anything and Smollett saying that the said incident had happened and wasn’t making it up. All was fine until the police wanted him to turn himself in for making everything up. So like I said, the rest of the documentary feels like a tussle between Smollett and the police department, each trying to prove that they are right. Smollett was even put behind bars for this incident. After a while, it came out that the Osundairo brothers were hired by Smollett to stage this attack. However, nothing was charged by the brothers.
I always get thrilled when it comes to Netflix documentaries. They are so well-made and so well-researched that you feel intrigued to finish the whole thing. Here also, with interviews of police officers who were directly involved in the case alongside the man of the hour, Jussie himself, we get to know both sides of the coin straight from the horse’s mouth itself. The archival footage and the interviews given by Smollett and representatives of the police back when the case was going further, add depth to the entire film. What’s even more interesting is that even if the documentary expects you to make your decision, it isn’t easy because when you hear the police, you feel they are correct, and when Smollett speaks, you think he has a point too. So it’s difficult to understand who was at fault. Which is why I highly recommend that this documentary be watched. It will keep you on your toes right from the start to the very end.
Final Score- [8/10]
Reviewed by - Neerja Choudhuri
Follow @NeerjaCH on Twitter
Publisher at Midgard Times