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Frankly, I still don't know what happened. But I know that what we were told isn't what happened.

# Review

This Netflix documentary is based on a book by Tom O'Neill on the infamous cult led by Charles Manson and the murders the cult committed. The Manson Family still captures popular imagination today, in films such as Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood and O’Neill’s book, which was released in 2019.

The documentary features interviews with O’Neill as well as people who were familiar with the Manson Family, such as Bobby Beausoleil, a convicted murderer who was friends with Charles Manson, and Stephen Kay, the persecutor overseeing the Manson trials. What emerges is a complex and convoluted story about a group of nihilistic hippies egged on by drug abuse and a paranoid narcissistic leader. I do like how the film explores some interesting theories outside the mainstream narrative at the time, like the likely involvement of the CIA. I also liked how the film dives into various details which are largely left out of the true crime narratives, such as Manson’s failed music career and his connection with Dennis Wilson of The Beach Boys.

Overall this film felt like the Sparknotes version of the story with some interesting details mixed in but lacking an overall narrative nor any novel insights.

# Conclusion

A generic-feeling true crime documentary.

# Overall rating: 6.5

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