Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son about His Father – B+

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In November 2001, Family Medicine resident Dr. Andrew Bagby was found murdered in Keystone State Park outside Latrobe, Pennsylvania. The only suspect and ex-girlfriend, Dr. Shirley Turner, fled the country to Newfoundland and then announced she was pregnant with his child. Bagby’s childhood friend and filmmaker Kurt Kuenne decided to travel across the country and interview everyone who knew Bagby so his unborn son would know something about his father. The extradition of Turner to the US was prolonged due to the incompetent Canadian Legal System. Then she abused the system further with an ensuing custody battle for her son (Zachary) with Bagby’s parents (David and Kathleen) . . .

The majority of the events occur between 2001 and 2003 and it took another 5 years to Kuenne to assemble all the footage; he admits he did not know when and how to end the film. The editing creatively combines snippets of home movies and interviews for comedic effect as well as contradictory evidence to something that just preceded it (a la JFK). But, there’s probably too much editing which gets distracting. A story this sensational that encompasses doctors, lawyers, a priest, and much more doesn’t need anything too flashy. But Kuenne does a good job of explaining the complexities of the case and its timeline. His one-sidedness and anger is justified and the actions of the Canadian court officials are obviously indefensible.But the real strength of the film is its emotionally cathartic juggernaut of an ending. The message of appreciating your family and friends is simple and obvious, but has rarely been sent this well. Kuenne also provides the music, and while it’s a little too Schindler’s List-y, it works. There’s a lot going on here: frustration, laughs, anger, love, and hate - sometimes simultaneously. There’s also a subtle acknowledgement of the dissolution of the American family, which can lead to extensive and long-lasting devastation. B+