An American Crime is a 2007 crime-drama film based on the true story of the torture and murder of Sylvia Likens by Indianapolis housewife Gertrude Baniszewski. It premiered at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival to controversy amongst the critics, most of whom, nonetheless, lauded the daring performances of Catherine Keener and Ellen Page. Because of internal problems with the film's original distributor, First Look, the film was headed to the straig...
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An American Crime is a 2007 crime-drama film based on the true story of the torture and murder of Sylvia Likens by Indianapolis housewife Gertrude Baniszewski. It premiered at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival to controversy amongst the critics, most of whom, nonetheless, lauded the daring performances of Catherine Keener and Ellen Page. Because of internal problems with the film's original distributor, First Look, the film was headed to the straight-to-DVD market, but Showtime stepped in and officially premiered the film on May 10, 2008. The film was nominated for a Golden Globe, an Emmy (both for Catherine Keener's performance) and a Writer's Guild Award.
An American Crime is split into reflections of contemporary and past settings. The contemporary setting is the trial of Gertrude Baniszewski (Catherine Keener), interspersed with lengthy flashbacks into the events described by the witnesses.
Sylvia and her sister Jenny (Hayley McFarland) find themselves on the road living between...
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