(2009)
***1/2
Based on a
true story, ‘In Her Skin’ chronicles the 1999 murder of 15-year old Australian teen,
Rachel Barber, by her former babysitter, Caroline Reed. The film is split into three sections first
focusing on the victim’s parents who gradually become hysterical once they
realize that their daughter is missing and the police are unwilling to
help. The second section focuses on the
murderer, a 19-year old self-loathing woman who views the victim as having
everything she does not with the final section focusing on the victim leading
up to the moment she was murdered.
Excellent
cinematography with long tracking shots, terrific casting, and great soundtrack
make this common story of obsession and murder a cut above similar accounts. Ruth Bradley who plays troubled Caroline does
a superb job portraying a very unstable individual. I looked at news articles
about the real case and I was astonished to learn that Caroline Reed was
recently paroled and I was struck by how similar the characters in the film
look like their real-life counterparts. If
I have one criticism it is that the film does not offer any insight into the
murderer’s psyche (clearly borderline personality) and only tells the surface
story of the events leading up to Barber’s death. The murder itself is disturbing to watch
especially because you know it’s coming.
Very engrossing. Here are
pictures of the real people portrayed in the film,
Caroline Reed
Rachael Barber
4 comments:
I completely agree with your assessment, intriguing story and rather bothersome that she is out on parole considering the nature of the crime.
Yeah that’s pretty creepy. Nice find, JPX.
Not my cup of tea but interesting review. The real-life pictures make me sad.
Another element that makes for biddy-unfriendly: based closely on real, tragic life events.
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