Chose a web based series over a book about the Manson Family and it backfired

I was trying to learn more about Manson for a discussion at work, and I had to pick between a 3 hour online documentary series and a 400 page book by a former prosecutor. I went with the series cause it was quicker, but it felt way too dramatic with reenactments and left out how the cops actually broke the case. Has anyone else found that the visual stuff misses key details compared to reading a firsthand account?

3 comments

3 Comments

ruby6594d ago

Wait wait wait they actually left out how the cops cracked the case? That's literally the most interesting part of the whole Manson story. I remember reading about how the detectives found those weird clothes and the address from a witness and just pieced it all together like a puzzle. The documentary people probably just wanted to show Charles doing his bug-eyed cult leader routine for two hours instead of the real detective work. Those reenactments are always so cringey too, with the fake blood and the dramatic music. I'd be ticked off if I spent three hours on that and missed the actual investigation part.

smith.elliot4d ago

Yeah I read Helter Skelter a while back and Bugliosi goes into detail about how they tracked down the clothes from a witness who saw people leaving the scene. The documentary people probably figured that wasn't flashy enough for TV. Real police work is boring paperwork and interviews not dramatic chase scenes.

logan_wood4d ago

Tbh that's the thing that bugs me the most about true crime docs these days. They think we need dramatic music and slow motion shots of actors looking intense instead of just showing us how real detectives actually solved the case with shoe leather and phone calls.