174. Web-Series Reviews – 29

More documentaries’ review…

Out of Thin Air – On the night of 26 January 1974, Guðmundur Einarsson, an 18-year-old labourer, was walking back from the community hall in Hafnarfjörður to his home, 10 kilometres away. He was last seen by a motorist after he nearly fell in front of a vehicle and has not been seen since. Ten months later, on 19 November 1974, Geirfinnur Einarsson, a 32-year-old construction worker unrelated to Guðmundur, received a phone call while at home and drove a short distance to the harbour cafe in Keflavik. He left the keys in the ignition, but failed to return to the car.

Six suspects, Sævar Ciesielski, Kristján Viðar Viðarsson, Tryggvi Rúnar Leifsson, Albert Klahn Skaftason, Guðjón Skarphéðinsson and Erla Bolladóttir, eventually signed confessions to murder, even though they had no clear memory of committing the crimes. They had been kept in isolation, interviewed at length under pressure with little contact allowed with their lawyers. They were given drugs and subjected to sleep deprivation and water torture, particularly the alleged ringleader, Sævar Ciesielski, who had a fear of water. He also said that the drugs which were supposed to help him sleep had affected his memory. The suspects said they signed the confessions in order to put an end to their solitary confinement. For example, Erla Bolladóttir was held in solitary confinement for 242 days; two were kept under solitary confinement for over 600 days, one of whom, Tryggvi Rúnar Leifsson, for 655 days — the longest solitary confinement outside of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. Sævar Cieselski was kept in custody for a total of 1,533 days.

Tryggvi Rúnar died in 2009, after battling cancer, while Sævar Ciesielski died after an accident in Denmark in 2011.

Most Icelanders came to believe the case had been a bad miscarriage of justice, and the BBC described it as "one of the most shocking miscarriages of justice Europe has ever witnessed."

In February 2018, the State Prosecutor requested that the Supreme Court acquit Sævar Ciesielski, Kristján Viðar Viðarsson, Tryggvi Rúnar Leifsson, Albert Klahn Skaftason, Guðjón Skarphéðinsson, and Erla Bolladóttir. On 27 September 2018, the Supreme Court acquitted all five men, but did not reverse Erla Bolladóttir's conviction.

An excellent documentary that shows both sides and interviews all the people involved in the case. Worth a watch.

Children of the Snow – Children of the Snow explores the unsolved and baffling kidnapping, captivity, and murder of four young people in the suburbs of Detroit 40 years ago. The case, dubbed the Oakland County Child Killer, sparked the biggest manhunt in US history, ushering in a wave of fear we came to know as 'stranger danger'.

An excellent 4-part series that sheds light on the case and the various follow-ups that were done to catch the culprits.  It also sheds light on the omissions and other evidences that were shut out so that truth could not come out.  This happened in 1977 and till today, there is no clear evidentiary-proof as to who was the culprit.  But the documentary points out the actual person(s) who might have committed this.  Well worth a watch!

Wormwood – Wormwood is a 2017 American six-part docudrama miniseries directed by Errol Morris and released on Netflix on December 15, 2017. The series is based on the life of a scientist, Frank Olson, who worked for a secret government biological warfare program located at Fort Detrick, Maryland. It focuses on the events leading up to and following his controversial death, which the US government originally claimed was a tragic accident, but later admitted was likely a suicide, caused by a mental breakdown brought on after being unknowingly dosed with LSD, while at a meeting with colleagues from the CIA who were involved in Project MKUltra. It also, in present day, follows Frank Olson's son, and discusses his belief that his father may have been murdered due to being perceived as a potential security risk. Interspersed between interviews and archival footage, are live action reenactments of the final days of Frank Olson's life and the various theories involving his death.

An excellent series.  You get to know how the truth is suppressed by the CIA and how even today, the truth is not out.  Even though, by the end of the series, we come to know as to how he was killed and by whom, the evidence is still not there.  Well worth a watch!

Cheers till next time!

Today’s Observation

The size of the cut you inflict on yourself while shaving is directly proportional to the importance of the even for which you are shaving😊