Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father
A filmmaker's tribute to a murdered friend becomes an anguished chronicle of family grief, parenthood, and the consequences of a shattered justice system.
Overview
A heartfelt exploration of love and loss, as a filmmaker honors his late friend and prepares for a new life.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- devastating
- intimate
- foreboding
- serious documentary viewing
- true crime viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as an exceptionally intimate, gripping, and devastating work of personal true-crime documentary filmmaking.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Kurt Kuenne makes the film as a memorial to his murdered friend and addresses the friend's son through the filmmaking project.
The initial tribute to Andrew Bagby develops through interviews and evidence concerning his murder and its aftermath.
The documentary arranges testimony, archival footage, and later developments so earlier family events acquire increasingly ominous significance.
Kuenne combines archive and firsthand testimony to construct a lasting portrait of Andrew for Zachary.
Films like Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father, and why
The Staircase
emotionally devastating documentary filmmaking, murdered subject, and intimate family-centered investigation
Making a Murderer
true crime documentary built from personal testimony, archival material, and escalating revelations
Stories We Tell
grief-driven nonfiction portrait using memory, family voices, and a filmmaker's personal connection
Dick Johnson Is Dead
deeply personal documentary about loss, memory, and the attempt to preserve a loved one's life
Movie Details
- Director
- Kurt Kuenne
- Release Date
- 2008-10-31
- Runtime
- 94 min
- Rating
- 8.1 / 10 (610)
Cast
- Kurt Kuenne
- Andrew Bagby
- David Bagby
- Kathleen Bagby
- Shirley Turner
- Zachary Andrew Turner
- Heather Arnold
- Jon Atkinson
- Bob Bagby
- Earlene Bagby
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father about?
- A filmmaker's tribute to a murdered friend becomes an anguished chronicle of family grief, parenthood, and the consequences of a shattered justice system.
- What is Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father as brisk, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father as moderate.
- What did critics think of Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father?
- Critics broadly regard the film as an exceptionally intimate, gripping, and devastating work of personal true-crime documentary filmmaking.
- Which films are like Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father?
- Films with a similar feel include The Staircase, Making a Murderer, Stories We Tell, and Dick Johnson Is Dead.
- How long is Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father?
- Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father runs 94 minutes.
- Where can I watch Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father?
- In United States, Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father streams on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads.
