Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (2008)

A filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friend's ex-girlfriend announces she is expecting his son.

Director:

Kurt Kuenne

Writer:

Kurt Kuenne

Stars:

Kurt Kuenne, Andrew Bagby, David Bagby

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Kurt Kuenne	...	Himself (voice)
Andrew Bagby	...	Himself (archive footage) (as Dr. Andrew Bagby)
David Bagby	...	Himself - Father
Kathleen Bagby	...	Herself - Mother
Shirley Turner	...	Herself - Ex-Girlfriend (archive footage) (as Dr. Shirley Turner)
Zachary Andrew Turner	...	Himself - Son (archive footage) (as Zachary Andrew Bagby)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Heather Arnold	...	Herself - Former Fiance (as Dr. Heather Arnold)
Jon Atkinson	...	Himself - Friend
Bob Bagby	...	Himself - Uncle (archive footage)
Earlene Bagby	...	Herself - Bob's Widow
James Bagby	...	Himself - Cousin
Linda Bagby	...	Herself - Aunt
Pat Bagby	...	Himself - Uncle
Jason Baldwin	...	Himself - Highschool Friend
Derek Barnard	...	Himself - Uncle

Storyline

In 2001, Andrew Bagby, a medical resident, is murdered not long after breaking up with his girlfriend. Soon after, when she announces she's pregnant, one of Andrew's many close friends, Kurt Kuenne, begins this film, a gift to the child. Friends, relatives, and colleagues say warm and loving things about Andrew, home movies confirm his exuberance. Andrew's parents, Kathleen and David, move to Newfoundland, Canada where the ex-girlfriend has gone. They await an arrest and trial of the murderer. They negotiate with the ex-girlfriend to visit their grandchild, Zachary, and they seek custody. Is there any justice; is Zachary a sweet and innocent consolation for the loss of their son?

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Plot Keywords:

newfoundland canada | colleague | canada | fleeing the country | title appears in writing | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

January 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Agapite Zachary - Gramma s' ena gio gia ton patera tou

Filming Locations:

Latrobe, Pennsylvania, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

MSNBC Films

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Kurt Kuenne: [to Andrew in home movie] I have a good idea: I'll go back in time and stop you from dying.

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Connections

References The Crow (1994)

User Reviews

A stunner

I just completed watching this harrowing documentary and it is only now that, having got the time to catch my breath, I am able to review it.

To begin with, I'd recommend not reading any of the other reviews so that you start watching it with absolutely no foreknowledge, and so that the film gets the opportunity to have the impact that it is designed to have, which, in my opinion, would only be fair to the director. Therefore without revealing the story I would only like to mention that this is a documentary that the film maker has made in remembrance of his close friend and his family; and its a bloody good watch.

The direction is great and the best part is that this documentary is made in 'real time'; which means that events unfold as the film progresses. This is probably something that I've never experienced in any other documentary before, since most of them are made in retrospect. It makes its point clean and crisp and it will certainly not be a waste of your time and money.

The film progresses in a quick and efficient manner and the time just seems to fly. The film is narrated in a very smart way with plenty of smash cuts. This documentary plays like a big budget commercial Hollywood film and will probably have you glued right up to the last minute.

So its good stuff. If you get the chance to watch it I'd recommend it. If you don't, well that's just too bad.