Which is why is so hard to understand the point of Devil’s Knot, an efficient, but generally underwhelming dramatization of a few key aspects of the case. Even more baffling is how the material drew the attention of Atom Egoyan, the esoteric director of such powerfully unnerving dramas as Exotica (1994) and The Sweet Hereafter (1997). Had it not been explored in such depth in so many other venues, Devil’s Knot might have carried more weight, but as is it feels like a Cliff’s Notes version, hitting a few major points and replaying a number of familiar scenarios, but adding nothing of any real substance to our understanding of the horrible events—both the murders and the railroading of three young men whose greatest crime was being socially unacceptable.

In adapting Arkansas Times journalist’s Mara Leveritt’s thorough book, screenwiters Paul Harris Boardman and Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose) understandably narrow their focus, choosing as their protagonist Ron Lax (Colin Firth), a socially conscientious private investigator who lent his services to the often overtaxed defense team. Lax is the film’s moral conscience, while its sense of grief is embodied in Pam Hobbs (Reese Witherspoon), the mother of one of the murdered boys. Pam’s husband Terry (Alessandro Nivola) has a streak of violence in him, and Leveritt’s book suggests that he might be the real culprit, although this is only hinted at in the film. Devil’s Knot goes through the motions, giving us recreations of the search after the boys were reported missing, the initial stages of the investigation (including the botched inquiry into a report of a seemingly mentally unstable man who showed up the night of the murders covered with blood in a nearby restaurant), the focus on the three teens, and their criminally biased trial (there were actually two, but the film condenses the big moments into a single trial).

Firth seems oddly miscast as Lax, perhaps because he is playing less of a character than he is a voice for justice and reason with a wobbling Southern accent. Witherspoon is much better as the bereaved mother, whose grief is initially misdirected via embarrassing interviews with the press. The young men cast as the three accused teens bear striking physical resemblances to their real-life counterparts, although it is not surprisingly James Hamrick’s Damien Echols, the supposed ringleader of a satanic cult responsible for the murders, who truly stands out. Although he only has minimal screen time, Hamrick leaves a lasting impression as Echols, a misguided 18-year-old who is so intent on distancing himself from “normal” society that he feeds excessively into the very prejudices that make it so easy for so many to demonize him (an avowed Wiccan, he nevertheless says plenty to suggest that he is the very epitome of the blood-drinking satanic cultist).

While Devil’s Knot pales in comparison to the Berlinger/Sinofsky documentaries in terms of depth, suspense, and characterological fascination, Egoyan nonetheless manages to generate some memorable moments, however scattered. He is particularly effective in marshaling an intense Southern Gothic atmosphere, beginning with a creepy opening shot that moves deep into the darkness of the woods where the children will later be murdered. Though much of the film has all of the visual distinction of a Lifetime movie, at times Egoyan and his regular cinematographer Paul Sarossy dig deep and come up with indelible images, particularly the surreal image of a distraught police officer slowly bringing the pale, naked body of one of the victims out of a murky river—it’s the kind of moment that is both emotionally summative and unnervingly beautiful at the same time. Unfortunately, it is not enough to rescue Devil’s Knot from general irrelevance, since it doesn’t have enough of a unique take on the overly familiar material to elevate it from the documentaries that covered the story so much better.

Copyright ©2014 James Kendrick

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