Cleveland Abduction

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source: Cleveland Abduction

Overall, the film certainly was enthralling. However, the reason for this is the fascinating and truly disturbing nature of this heinous, cold, brutal and unfathomable crime, not the quality of the script or screenplay. I understand Michelle's reasons for wanting to authorise and contribute to the making of this film, but sadly that doesn't change the fact that the finished product is rushed and does no justice to the sheer despair and pain these girls felt captive in that place. This case shocked me at the time, but when recently I was reminded of it after watching a Fritzl documentary, I became really intrigued by many things about this case. Castro as a person, his deceiving ways of luring the victims, that house, the street, Cleveland as a place. I've seen the interviews and news coverage, Castro's statement in court etc. As a sociologist, its truly mind boggling that these women made it through such a distressing, frightening and brutal situation. How did it go unnoticed? How is it possible with people visiting that house? In some parallel American universe, boarded up windows on a residential house is somehow inconspicuous, and the fact that the police ignored reports of screams is diabolical on their behalf. If that was England, the previous two points I made would undoubtedly prompted more of a reaction by the Police. All this movie did for me was shed more light on what went on in the house and Ariel's relationship with the girls, so for that I can't fault it much. But some of the acting and the way the scenes play out doesn't in any way capture the extent of the suffering that took place and the effects it could have on someone. Amanda Berry being apparently alone all the time in another room and having a child with him deserved more airtime than she received, as well as Gina being so so very young, naive and scared too. What i'm saying is that this story needs a better director, around 200 minutes minimum, a much bigger budget and a plot that delves deeper into the circumstances around each kidnapping and the effects on each victim, individually. May all three of these women have the rest of their lives filled with joy and may they be able to move past this hell and be loved like they deserved, along with Amanda's child.

I thought the story telling was great. For the people asking why the horrendous acts weren't portrayed- it's not a snuff film. For those asking why we couldn't see more from the other victims perspective nor why the neighbours didn't speak out- it's a film that has a time restriction to it. For those wanting more answers to the complex relationship of a capture who violently, cruelly and mental manipulates his victims (I'm one of these)- again it's a film with time restrictions that issue in itself would result in a film of at least 6 months long I'm sure. This film sickened me and I almost stopped watching because of the content. But I rate the film highly because the story was portrayed well and showed a horrific story as well as any Hollywood film could, plus the actors were great.

I knew nothing of the case before watching this movie so I found the events beyond shocking. I was gripped all the away through. I found the storytelling suspenseful and I believed the performances. The faith of the lead character was deeply inspiring and I was left feeling equally moved as I was haunted. There were some particularly difficult scenes to reconstruct in this movie and I felt the filmmakers did a brilliant job in tackling such a challenging and sensitive set of circumstances. I would recommend this as a must watch.

I don't know how is it even possible to take such a serious real life event and make it look like a joke. This was one of the worst acting I have ever seen. To the point that makes me wonder how Taryn Manning makes money as actress. They censored or simple didn't show the brutality of what actually happened. The movie was way rushed and spent way to much time getting into important things and spends way too little time there. If you are not willing to make a dark movie don't choose a dark theme. If you are interesting in the story just go and watch a documentary about it there are plenty and they are way better. Don't watch this.

Everything seemed to be going wrong for our heroine, a high school dropout with a child, and an uncaring mother. It just seems that there is one misfortune after another and eventually the loss of her young son to the courts and her inability to get to the court on time forces her to take what will be the most memorable ride in her life. Bound and sadistically tortured by someone she trusted, this is basically a story of survival. Our demented man tries to start a family by kidnapping two other girls and impregnating one of them. The story is also poignant since once freedom is achieved, we see how our young unfortunate had to work her way back into life,after she had experienced rejection and no one missed her during her 10 years of captivity. A harrowing, tragic experience that altered the lives of its victims.

Once upon a time there was a wicked ogre named Ariel Castro who snatched three girls off the street and held them captive in secret in a residential area for over a decade. Imagine if that story had come down to us from ancient Greece, or even a much more recent era. Okay, let's try another approach, imagine this was a novel or a film script, would it get past the slush pile or anywhere near a studio? Of course not. Sadly, this well-documented tale of sexual sadism and just plain sadism is not only more outrageous than any such legendary or fictional offering, it is 100% true. "Cleveland Abduction" has been given a semi-documentary format, seen mostly through the eyes of Michelle Knight, Castro's first victim, and the one who suffered most. We follow the tale from Michelle's abduction as far as her victim impact statement at his trial. Sadly or otherwise, Castro avoided a living hell by committing suicide a mere month into his life sentence. Doubtless he will have gone to the real one where he will occupy a place or torment only slightly less hot than Ted Bundy. This film is well acted by all the players. How could he have got away with it for so long? We can all ask that question, but wisdom is hindsight is a wonderful thing.

Cleveland Abduction is very identical to case documentary or event reenactment, and it's highly effective. It doesn't present too much glossy cinematography to make it as authentic as possible, though still with enough restriction for the delicate subject. Acting from Taryn Manning and Raymond Cruz, the captor and captive, are brazenly intimidating to highlight the gruesome struggle. It follows the event of actual kidnapping where a man, Ariel Castro (Raymond Cruz) abducts three women for eleven years. The movie depicts this horrendous act with superior acting and true to life visual. It occasionally looks devoid of color, grainy and dirty, while some of the outdoor scenery seems refreshing with cool ambiance. This presents the urban location in accurate perspective along with its darker shade. Much of its better moments are from the good performance by the actors. It has surprisingly tender and sorrowful moments, all of which look genuine. This is not a well-orchestrated crime, yet it's incredibly shocking that the real person can maintain the act for so long. Raymond Cruz is a good cast for the role, he's often sickeningly brutal and easily becomes the fitting antagonist. However, it does have some flaws. Several of the scenes try to depict the abuse, but they might feel heavy-handed in the approach. The camera is sometimes out of focus, it's probably intentional to induce realism, though it's a bit comfortable at times. The pace tends to screech a bit towards the second half despite the good intention of showing the aftermath or restrain for more gory moments. These don't take away the venerable effort to convey its message though. Keeping the story grounded, it manages to tell the abusive story and its ramification with equal poise and intimate outlook.