This documentary got me hooked within minutes. Stepping into this family's private life with only original police footage and personal homevideo's gave the most realistic image to start a horrific story. The mystery surrounding it made me feel instantly anxious of the outcome. The tension rises to unbearable levels until the climax hits. I wouldn't recommend this to young parents or anyone who likes to sleep right after watching this, because I won't for some hours... that's for sure.
210 Reviews
Heartbreaking
nikolemarovic9 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
So I was very interested in this case when it first happened. Horribly tragic and sad, but I was curious as to how someone who was portrayed so normal could do this. Especially to his two daughters. According to everyone interviewed he was an attentive and caring father. Also according to Shannan, he was the best thing that had happened to her. Who doesn't want to know what happens to a person to make them "snap" like this? That's what the documentary was missing. The psychological stand point was completely emitted. This documentary was put together very well, with home footage and Shannan's personal videos she would post on Facebook, but what happened to Chris Watts to make him do this was an important piece that should have been included.
So freaking depressing and, unfortunately, real
billyt333 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I'm a Dad, a proud Dad. I would do anything for my children, I mean Anything! This documentary made me so so mad! This person doesn't deserve to exist, he is an animal and something truly possessed this person. He's not a man, he's not a Dad...he doesn't even deserve to be described as a human. He's a pitiful excuse of flesh! No Dad is his right man would ever harm his babies or their Mommy...no matter what the relationship is like. Get a freaking divorce! That's all you had to do, you freaking loser! Give me 5 minutes with this low life, please! My heart breaks for those babies and the Mom that tried so hard to just be normal, have a family and be loved. No excuses man, this guy is the worst of the worst and this was one of the hardest shows I've ever watched. It's painful and unfortunately, it's real. Too sad for sure.
Concise doc
Calicodreamin1 October 2020
A concise documentary covering the disappearance of shannan watts and her two children, and the subsequent investigation. The timeline was well established and well presented. The first hand footage was quite extensive.
This is heart breaking to say the least
andibrag30 September 2020
I can only say that I maybe the only one who was not aware of this terrible crime committed. Using Police body cam , Personal home movies. Facebook and text messages this had me gripped from start to finish. I was absolutely glued. I was left emotional and drained.
Good doc
ajn-759365 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
American Murder: The Family Next Door is a great doc that really shows what a true monster Chris Watts was. I remember watching the same uploaded body cam footage on YouTube while this case was happening, however I would've enjoyed a more narrative story to the doc explaining key points throughout. One point being that you can clearly see how nervous Watts was being in front of police and neighbors when they were watching him put his own wife's body in his truck. If the doc had expert criminal psychologists or law enforcement who were involved with the case share their thoughts and story, would've been a nice addition to the doc and give it more insight. The ending was so gut wrenching how he described what ultimately happened to his family, crazy to think how twisted people can be in this world.
A uniquely styled documentary that works extremely well
jtindahouse22 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Usually I absolutely despise spoilers, but 'American Murder: The Family Next Door' is actually one time I would recommend knowing the final result of before going in. I had this spoiled for me before watching and ultimately actually ended up being happy that it happened. The reason for this is that the most fascinating part of this documentary was watching the killer's movements throughout the runtime. Watching how they acted knowing full well what they'd done. It's one thing to watch a guilty character in a movie move about, but a whole other watching a real life person do it.
This documentary was captivating from start to finish. It's unlike any documentary I've seen before in the sense that it contains zero current interviews. All the footage is from police body-cams, surveillance footage, interview room footage and Facebook footage. It almost feels like a real movie in that sense. I understand why not many documentaries are lucky enough to have this much footage available to them, but if they do they should absolutely always use it.
This is a heart-breaking story. The details of the crime are absolutely devastating. It's not an easy watch. It is proof that pure evil does exist in this world sadly. It is a very well-made documentary though and well worth your time to watch it. I highly recommend this one.
This documentary was captivating from start to finish. It's unlike any documentary I've seen before in the sense that it contains zero current interviews. All the footage is from police body-cams, surveillance footage, interview room footage and Facebook footage. It almost feels like a real movie in that sense. I understand why not many documentaries are lucky enough to have this much footage available to them, but if they do they should absolutely always use it.
This is a heart-breaking story. The details of the crime are absolutely devastating. It's not an easy watch. It is proof that pure evil does exist in this world sadly. It is a very well-made documentary though and well worth your time to watch it. I highly recommend this one.
Like watching a plane crash
edwin-wks1 October 2020
Other than stitching up vignettes in a chronological order, this documentary offers barely any new insight to the Watts familicide. It has been nearly two years since his incarceration and there are no recent interviews with the killer or family members.
The story plays like an episode of Air Crash Investigation (minus the investigation) - multiple failures must occur to precipitate the ultimate catastrophe. Chris stalks Shanann on Facebook. Shanann agrees to meet but would repeatedly rebuff Chris' advances. But why? Best guess would be her feelings of inadequacy about herself and her lupus. She finally succumbs to his charm and agrees to marry him. But Chris' family fails to attend his wedding because Cindy, his mother, does not approve of Shanann and does not want to lose her son to her. What does this say of Cindy? It would take a deeply narcissistic person to make her son's wedding about her and sabotage her son's happiness.
According to the neighbours, Chris Watts is a subdued man. In his text messages to his wife, we see a man whose words do not reflect his actions. This is a man so accustomed to putting on a performance that he probably does not have a coherent sense of self because he has dedicated his life to appeasing everyone around him, not least his mother. According to Shanann's friends, she is "bossy"; in other words, she is a control freak. This is consistent with her anxious and validation-seeking personality. She massively over-reacts while at her in-laws despite an already tenuous relationship with Cindy. Her text messages to her friends and husband also do not paint a portrait of someone with healthy emotional regulation. Despite all of her protestations via text messages and hand-written letters to her husband detailing her anguish, she seems incapable of having face-to-face discussions with him without flying off the handle. This was a couple in dire need of relationship counselling and the basics of effective interpersonal communication.
Nothing can bring back Shanann and the kids. Just as the lessons of air crashes have made air travel safer and prevented more lives lost unnecessarily to air crashes, these tragedies hopefully serve as cautionary tales to couples in toxic or unfulfilling relationships. Get help as soon as issues arise. Most of all, do not flog a dead horse. Sometimes the best thing to do is simply to walk away calmly with dignity.
The story plays like an episode of Air Crash Investigation (minus the investigation) - multiple failures must occur to precipitate the ultimate catastrophe. Chris stalks Shanann on Facebook. Shanann agrees to meet but would repeatedly rebuff Chris' advances. But why? Best guess would be her feelings of inadequacy about herself and her lupus. She finally succumbs to his charm and agrees to marry him. But Chris' family fails to attend his wedding because Cindy, his mother, does not approve of Shanann and does not want to lose her son to her. What does this say of Cindy? It would take a deeply narcissistic person to make her son's wedding about her and sabotage her son's happiness.
According to the neighbours, Chris Watts is a subdued man. In his text messages to his wife, we see a man whose words do not reflect his actions. This is a man so accustomed to putting on a performance that he probably does not have a coherent sense of self because he has dedicated his life to appeasing everyone around him, not least his mother. According to Shanann's friends, she is "bossy"; in other words, she is a control freak. This is consistent with her anxious and validation-seeking personality. She massively over-reacts while at her in-laws despite an already tenuous relationship with Cindy. Her text messages to her friends and husband also do not paint a portrait of someone with healthy emotional regulation. Despite all of her protestations via text messages and hand-written letters to her husband detailing her anguish, she seems incapable of having face-to-face discussions with him without flying off the handle. This was a couple in dire need of relationship counselling and the basics of effective interpersonal communication.
Nothing can bring back Shanann and the kids. Just as the lessons of air crashes have made air travel safer and prevented more lives lost unnecessarily to air crashes, these tragedies hopefully serve as cautionary tales to couples in toxic or unfulfilling relationships. Get help as soon as issues arise. Most of all, do not flog a dead horse. Sometimes the best thing to do is simply to walk away calmly with dignity.
Unflinching look at a murderer.
aamir90101 October 2020
Before watching this I had heard about this particular case, but my mind was blown when they were looking at the neighbors footage. At that point you can see how he changes his expression and gets all nervous.
Great use of footage and body cams it made us seem like we're were part of the entire investigation. Another Netflix documentary hit out of the park!
Great use of footage and body cams it made us seem like we're were part of the entire investigation. Another Netflix documentary hit out of the park!
Well done
yevhenyia30 September 2020
Warning: Spoilers
The issue with sound is probably the main pitfall in terms of production. I had to watch it with subtitles because it was challenging to understand the speakers, especially during the footage from the interrogation room. However, I would say that creating a documentary on the basis of the family's social media, police body cameras, and interrogation was on a plus side for me. It added realism to the story.
I understood what happened from the very beginning. It was an expression of relief on her husband's face that made everything clear. Yet, I would never understand why such cases occur. It is beyond my grasp. Yes, the wife was incredibly annoying or at least it appears so in the documentary. I would understand why her husband would want to divorce her. However, what is the point to continue living with a person you hate or, more so, conceiving another child. I'm more than sure now that he killed her and children instead of divorcing simply because of money issues. Divorce would meant that he had to pay child support, move out of the house, and find a better job because she earned the most of money and it was her house. It is possible that he married her for money as well because I do not believe she became that annoying and incredibly controlling all of a sudden. The documentary conclusion was correct, the murders were premeditated.
unsettling in another way
Henry_Seggerman4 October 2020
A very intoxicating detective story. But what makes it really spooky is, if you've seen fiction films like CACHE and DOSSIER 51, this uses real surveillance footage and text message and voicemail evidence as most of the film's content. It's a technological marvel -- but in a scary, Big Brother/Stasi way.
No respect for privacy of the victims.
billiejoesmum27 November 2020
Warning: Spoilers
This was overall a good show for it's length. It could definitely be improved by being a short series and going more in depth, but it still exposed the deception fairly well.
The reason I gave it a lower score was that it showed extremely personal communications from Shannan to her husband and friends, which her next of kin may have given consent for, but still took a lot of dignity and respect away from her IMO.
I would be mortified, if after I'd been murdered, all the texts & letters discussing my sex life - in detail - were plonked on a screen for entertainment in a Netflix documentary.
Things like 'I've taken a night shower, he knows that means I want sex' or 'I'm so horny today' should stay between either a couple, or the close friends one chooses to share it with, not the rest of the world.
They could still have used most of the texts to demonstrate a marriage breaking down (or one person neglecting it), without using everything and leaving her some dignity.
I know if it were possible, I'd be haunting the one who gave those permissions as well as the husband who murdered me and me children!
The reason I gave it a lower score was that it showed extremely personal communications from Shannan to her husband and friends, which her next of kin may have given consent for, but still took a lot of dignity and respect away from her IMO.
I would be mortified, if after I'd been murdered, all the texts & letters discussing my sex life - in detail - were plonked on a screen for entertainment in a Netflix documentary.
Things like 'I've taken a night shower, he knows that means I want sex' or 'I'm so horny today' should stay between either a couple, or the close friends one chooses to share it with, not the rest of the world.
They could still have used most of the texts to demonstrate a marriage breaking down (or one person neglecting it), without using everything and leaving her some dignity.
I know if it were possible, I'd be haunting the one who gave those permissions as well as the husband who murdered me and me children!
Made me feel sad and angry!! But very good true crime documentary
freddy_at_home8 October 2020
I did not have any information about this case or story, before seeing this documentary. I like how this was put together and how it all unfolded with it's terrible truth. Do not google the case and just watch it.
A must watch for true crime lovers. A really sad, heartfelt and unfair story, leaving you angry and thoughtful. See it on a day or night when you are not having a bad day or night. It might make you feel sick to your stomach.
9/10
A must watch for true crime lovers. A really sad, heartfelt and unfair story, leaving you angry and thoughtful. See it on a day or night when you are not having a bad day or night. It might make you feel sick to your stomach.
9/10
Compelling but mysterious
faxanadonts10 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
The body cam footage and texts make it compelling and interesting, but you don't really gain any insight into why he did it as opposed to just leaving. It's very surface reconstruction, which is good in a way, as it sticks to the facts, but there is something missing and by the end you feel it. You don't really feel that the event is explained in a satisfying way. I can see how she is super annoying though. Obviously no one ever deserves to be physically hurt or killed, but it's important to note if you try to de-ball a man or make him feel little, especially over time in a long marriage or relationship, a rage will potentially build up that can be dangerous. Make a person feel like they are nothing and have no power, and eventually one day they might show you that they do, with tragic results all around. Physical harm is never justified, but that doesn't mean it's not important to find out what led to it, so that it can be avoided in the future.
Shocking and sad, and not only the murders
jckhammer30 September 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Very shocking account of a domestic murder. There are a number of more complete footage clips on you tube that are shown here in this movie and if someone desires they can search for even more explanation on how Chris eventually was caught. One commenter here mentions the audio is hard to hear and its a guessing game in the interrogation room....nonsense. Unless this commentator is illiterate, there are full subtitles and there is no guessing. Ignore that review. In addition to the actually murders of the children it is almost equally disturbing and at at the number of superstar detectives behind there phones and screens that think they know all what went on. Many people were claiming Chris innocence and threats against the wife's family. Social media is a curse .
Lack of information
limpsh11 October 2020
For me it was too much unnecessary home video material of the mom and children. Sure it's good to see some of it to get more emotional for their death but the makers of this documentary left so much out. I would've liked to see more of the mistress, more of who he really was (interviews with his friends/family) and more of how the police worked on this case.
It was also a bit difficult to keep up with the timeliness.
Thought I knew the full story...
erinchatters1 October 2020
Even though I had previously watched crime shows on this tragic story, I felt this was done from a perspective in which focused on highlighting events that I either knew little or nothing about, which made for a sad but informative watch.
A tragic story
valleyjohn13 October 2021
I know it's an obvious thing to say but this film is incredibly sad .
It's really difficult to review this Netflix film without talking about what happened and spoiling it for the viewer but I won't .
In 2018, 34-year-old Shanann Watts and her two young daughters disappear in Colorado. With the heartbreaking details emerging, the family's story made headlines around the world.
The whole way this story is told is by on screen text messages that were sent and Facebook postings .
It made me incredibly angry and unsympathetic to the wife because she couldn't stop telling everyone her personal life . I'm not saying that it's justification for what happened but it certainly contributed.
There is also pulled footage from police bodycams and interview rooms and it's makes it feel like the crime is unfolding before your eyes.
It's a short film , and that's a good thing because there is absolutely nothing good to come out of this story but if you like real life crime stories made with a modern twist then this will be right up your street but I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable that I was using this tragedy for eighty minutes entertainment.
It's really difficult to review this Netflix film without talking about what happened and spoiling it for the viewer but I won't .
In 2018, 34-year-old Shanann Watts and her two young daughters disappear in Colorado. With the heartbreaking details emerging, the family's story made headlines around the world.
The whole way this story is told is by on screen text messages that were sent and Facebook postings .
It made me incredibly angry and unsympathetic to the wife because she couldn't stop telling everyone her personal life . I'm not saying that it's justification for what happened but it certainly contributed.
There is also pulled footage from police bodycams and interview rooms and it's makes it feel like the crime is unfolding before your eyes.
It's a short film , and that's a good thing because there is absolutely nothing good to come out of this story but if you like real life crime stories made with a modern twist then this will be right up your street but I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable that I was using this tragedy for eighty minutes entertainment.
I wish I never heard of this movie
ivko7 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
It's kind of amazing how the modern digital life is so extensively documented that a clever team of editors can take your social media accounts and the videos off your phone and make a fairly comprehensive movie of your life even after you've gone. That's what happened here; the production team assembled a detailed accounting of the lives of a family that experienced an unspeakable tragedy. By the end of the film you have a sense that you know these people, which is also part of the problem: the more you find yourself caring, the harder it will be to keep watching.
I really struggled with the foregone conclusion that was the lives of this family. Some things are so horrible my brain just doesn't want to accept them. I watched the movie in fits, drawn on by morbid curiosity but forced to continuously stop by some childish part of my brain that believed that if I simply stopped watching then somehow the remaining unseen events of the film would be trapped in a time bubble that couldn't proceed until I did. If only life worked that way. I never did make it to the very end of the movie because I just never want to hear the full detail of certain events.
The movie is well made, but painful to watch. I'll admit to a certain amount of tears, and a sincere wish that I'd never heard of the Watts family. I will never understand why certain people fought to remove the application of the death penalty; if I had those memories floating around my skull, I would think death would be my best friend. Instead I'll just hope certain people are around for a long, long time, getting visited every single damn day by others who know what this person did to kids.
I really struggled with the foregone conclusion that was the lives of this family. Some things are so horrible my brain just doesn't want to accept them. I watched the movie in fits, drawn on by morbid curiosity but forced to continuously stop by some childish part of my brain that believed that if I simply stopped watching then somehow the remaining unseen events of the film would be trapped in a time bubble that couldn't proceed until I did. If only life worked that way. I never did make it to the very end of the movie because I just never want to hear the full detail of certain events.
The movie is well made, but painful to watch. I'll admit to a certain amount of tears, and a sincere wish that I'd never heard of the Watts family. I will never understand why certain people fought to remove the application of the death penalty; if I had those memories floating around my skull, I would think death would be my best friend. Instead I'll just hope certain people are around for a long, long time, getting visited every single damn day by others who know what this person did to kids.
interesting
moviematthewh-6078323 December 2020
A better Netflix crime story. Why? Because it's only the real footage or news stories that's used in the film. It's not filled with people being interviewed talking about the event from the past which just pads the runtime. It works better and keeps you invested with body cams and real police interviews. Nothing is staged. It's all real.
Incomplete
Ye7692342 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
First off, for a documentary that's nothing but surveillance and body cam footage, it was exceptionally riveting. Unfortunately the filmmaker seemed incredibly uninterested in exploring why this tragedy happened. The simplest google search tells you this family was in financial armageddon, yet they're going on vacations, buying expensive trucks and a nice home, along with a having another kid? That seemed like important info that wasn't explored. Also this may not be for me to say but I refuse to believe that dirty girlfriend of his didn't have something to do with this. I was shocked by how disingenuous her sympathy for the family seemed along with the fact that her complaints about his lying seemed a calculated move to turn the investigators away from her. Oh and apparently she knew all about the family before she met Chris and was making phone calls to him around the time the murders happened! You know how much of this was explored in this film? Absolutely nothing. Instead you're left believing he was a normal man who just randomly killed his family when there is so many other details to this. Obviously because men are killers, right?
Impressive work, yet terrible story
marno767 October 2022
Warning: Spoilers
I am italian. Did not know anything about the story.
It's so well done, so immersive that you think it's a movie.
Technically is a masterpiece - the editing is impressive and innovative thanks - and the pain it makes you feel is unbearable.
Alas since it is and was all real, it leaves you with lots of question.
How does a brain can work with total denial instead than facing the facts of life?
I think mr Watts brain saw his family has an obstacle to his happiness and decided to remove it altogheter by force instead than going trough a "normal" divorce.
Accepting failure should be normal.
A case entirely similar, if not identical, happened in Italy: check for the Carlo Lissi case.
It's so well done, so immersive that you think it's a movie.
Technically is a masterpiece - the editing is impressive and innovative thanks - and the pain it makes you feel is unbearable.
Alas since it is and was all real, it leaves you with lots of question.
How does a brain can work with total denial instead than facing the facts of life?
I think mr Watts brain saw his family has an obstacle to his happiness and decided to remove it altogheter by force instead than going trough a "normal" divorce.
Accepting failure should be normal.
A case entirely similar, if not identical, happened in Italy: check for the Carlo Lissi case.
See also
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