Humanities Review
90 day fiancé: Before the 90 days is a “spinoff” of 90 day fiancé. Before the 90 days showcases couples meeting their partners for the first time (usually an American with a foreign partner trying to move back to the states) before they start the marriage visa process. When they file for the marriage visa they have 90 days to get married or their partner will be deported. Me and my girlfriend have currently been binge watching this show and it brings us a lot of joy but there are also some major flaws with the show. The editing is one of the biggest flaws, things are cut to look a certain way (usually to make things look worse than they actually are). While the editing can be bad to the point where it ruins your perception of how the couples actually are, there are moments where the editing is so bad that it’s comical (such as a misplaced face of judgement when their partner says something odd). Another flaw with the show is the glorification of toxic couples, the couple with the most drama is shown the most and it seems like the show tries to set up situations that are bound to start an argument. The show doesn’t make it a point that couples shouldn’t function like the way some of them do, they just leave everything up for interpretation. The final flaw is the fact that TLC tries to make the foreigners seem like they’re only in it for money or a visa, while those can be factors in deciding if you want to marry someone doesn’t mean that it’s a bad thing. If you were living in a third world country obviously having a partner who can provide for you is gonna be your top priority, it’s not fair to hold them to the same standards as someone who was born and raised in America. Although the show isn’t perfect it is extremely entertaining, watching the arguments these couples go through and the secrets they keep from each other makes the show extremely addicting. I would recommend anyone who’s interested to watch the show to go ahead and watch it but keep in mind it’s not perfect.
Informal/Social media criticism
My critic of American Murder: The Family Next Door a thread
Netflix just recently released a documentary about Chris Watts, the man who murdered his wife and kids to presumably to pursue another life with his side chick.
My problem with this documentary is the fact that nothing is certain, the motive is uncertain, the argument Chris had with his wife is uncertain, even the side chick was an extremely rushed story for it being the supposed reason Chris murdered his family.
In the documentary Chris is seen texting someone while cops are searching the home, we are able to see his wifes texts BUT WE NEVER SEE WHO CHRIS WAS TEXTING. WHY????
It would be so much better if they were able to get a statement from Chris or even the wife’s friends, since you know they were standing right next to Chris A MURDERER.
This documentary felt extremely lazy since most of what was shown is all available on Youtube uncut… Not to mention how they didn’t even provide an update on how Chris is doing in prison. It added no new information towards the case which was extremely disappointing.
Academic Criticism
American Murder: The Family Next Door is a documentary on Netflix released on September 30th 2020. The documentary follows the story of the now convicted murderer Chris Watts. Chris Watts is from Colorado living with his pregnant wife Shannan and two daughters. Chris ended up murdering his family presumably to start a new life with his girlfriend, which he was cheating on his wife with. While the story is upsetting, the documentary doesn’t do the story justice.
In the documentary many parts are left out, such as his motive. The documentary hints at the fact that him cheating on his wife had something to do with him murdering his entire family but it is never confirmed by Chris or his parents themselves. This documentary focuses on texts between Chris and Shannan but they never bring in any outside perspectives on the situation. Friends or families opinions could’ve easily been added but they weren’t. For example, Shannan’s friends came to their house worrying about Shannan going missing. Then Chris the murderer shows up on the crime scene to allow law enforcement into his home. A brief interview could’ve been conducted on the friends to really capture what was going through their minds at the time.
This documentary could’ve tied up the loose ends and endless questions people had when this case first came out to the public but instead they recycled already public information and cut out key information. If this documentary was a multi-part series going into depth about everything it would’ve went a long way. For those who already know the case the documentary is essentially useless.
