That was an excellent one.

Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Lack of good storyline.

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

Marina Zenovich delivers a powerful film with compelling characters and great pacing. She presents what happened without bias as it unfolded. Nothing is rushed. The Duke lacrosse team appears guilty. Mike Nifong appears to be a hero fighting for women everywhere. She presents the case in both Durham and nationally, rich vs. poor, white vs. black, outsider vs. local. She doesn't leave any opinions out. The five most central figures in this film weren't interviewed. That'd be a disaster for most directors, but Zenovich is undeterred. We hear from the lacrosse players' parents and they deliver the type of emotion that the players might not have. She gets us into Mike Nifong's head without Nifong saying a word.

While I am sure there are a few folks out there that would never be convinced, this installment of "30 for 30" should easily convince any reasonable viewer that the infamous Duke lacrosse team rape case was a farce. It does a very, very thorough job in presenting the story from start to finish and it's a darn shame that the reporters working on the case initially didn't show the same dedication to getting the story right. In hindsight, it's clearly a case where minds were made up long before all the facts were obtained...and if folks had just waited they would have seen that the rapes could not have occurred.What I appreciate about the film, in addition to its thoroughness, is how the story is presented. Through the first third of the show, the viewer is left scratching their head and thinking "I thought the guys DIDN'T commit the rape...maybe they really did"! In other words, it didn't jump to any conclusions but just showed what happened and let it all play out at it did in reality.Is there anything I didn't like? Well, a few of the individuals involved refused to be interviewed. The three exonerated lacrosse players refused--most likely to get this story behind them. The prosecutor refused--most likely because he is an evil man. And, the prison system would not allow the accuser to be interviewed because she's in prison for murder. I would have loved to have heard from these folks. Apart from this, the film was very well constructed and convincing...and makes for very compelling viewing. And, sadly, it's a case that tends to make folks assume that all too many real rape victims are 'just making it all up'.

The Twentieth Century saw three notorious rape cases in the United States that were tinged with racial controversy: the Massie Affair and the Scotsborough Boys - both from 1931; and the much later Tawana Brawley case. All three turned out to be grand hoaxes, and all caused enormous damage. Were we really expecting the Twenty-first Century to be any different? The 2006 Duke Lacrosse case saw three supposedly privileged young white men accused of the rape of a black stripper, who most shamefully were tried and convicted in the media before any of them set foot inside a courtroom. Director Marina Zenovich has done an exemplary job with this exhaustive documentary which was released a decade and a week after the gang rape that never happened.At the end of the day, the only person who ended up in gaol over this sordid affair was the District Attorney. We hear from him only in archive footage, ditto the accused, none of them wanting to take part, nor did any of the university faculty. The one curious desideratum is Kim Roberts, the other exotic dancer who was present when Crystal Mangum wasn't raped.One thing that sticks out is the apologetics for this clearly toxic woman, even from at least one of her victims. It's all down to her poor mental health - boo hoo. Guess that must be yet another example of the misogynistic rape culture in which we live. Not.Mangum wanted to appear in this documentary, but couldn't due to, uh hum, force majeure! In archive footage though she gives a lachrymosal performance: "The Duke Lacrosse case will never define who I am". Dead right - having stabbed her lover to death, for which she received a maximum eighteen year sentence, she is now forever defined as a convicted murderess.

30 for 30: Fantastic Lies (2016) **** (out of 4)The Duke Lacross scandal is something that I'm sure most people watching this episode of 30 for 30 will remember. The basic story is that a black stripper went to a party on the Duke campus, which was held by members of the lacrosse team. From there she went to the police stating that she had been raped. What followed was an insane media circus that had typical story lines: White vs black. Rich vs poor. Privledged vs a nobody. The entire media turned on the players without every asking what the truth was.I must admit that I remember every bit of this case. I remember the first time it was reported by ESPN and I followed throughout the next year. At the same time I must admit that I thought the boys were guilty and this documentary shows why people such as myself were stupid for believing the story that the media was selling but the film also discusses why so many people of power were guilty for falling for lies. This is a pretty remarkable case because there was absolutely no evidence against the three Duke players yet no one really cared about that and the media was more interested in telling the story of rich Duke kids raping a poor black woman.Considering the current political nature in this country, FANTASTIC LIES is even more power. There's no question that the 30 for 30 series has been an excellent form of entertainment over the years and it has delivered many great episodes but this one here is without question one of the best. Many of the key players aren't interviewed but there are some members from the media who stand up and admit that they were wrong. There's some great discussion about the various crimes committed by the D.A. and the police. As one of the Duke victims said, if they would do this to rich people what were they doing to those who couldn't defend themselves? This is certainly one of the best episodes in the series and hopefully the final word that clears the people who were innocent of the charges.