The film faithfully reproduces very well what happened to Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, and to the whole investigation. This was the purpose of the film, and this goal has been achieved. It is not a film to be re-made, or to be burned up. Maybe, the only inaccuracy in the film, for me was that Raffaele Sollecito has never said that Amanda had gone out the night of the murder, he only stated that he had smoked a joint that night, after seeing a movie ,and has confused memories,but for what he remembered Amanda had never left his house We recommend viewing, because it is interesting and well done. Very nice interpretation of Hayden Panettiere (Amanda)
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amazona@inwind.it28 April 2012
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SnoopyStyle12 October 2015In 2007 Perugia, Italy, Amanda Knox (Hayden Panettiere) and boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito (Paolo Romio) call the police for a possible break-in. Then the body of her roommate Meredith Kercher is found locked in her room. In a long flashback, Amanda is an eager university girl from Seattle who wants to spend a year in Italy. She and Sollecito become prime suspect and eventually convicted for the Kercher murder.
I really like the start with the movie getting right into the case. Then the movie goes back to a very bland flashback. Anything significant gleamed from the flashback can easily be included later on in smaller snippets. It's only ten minutes but it sucks out much of the early tension. Generally, this is an acceptable TV movie with Panettiere keeping the character compelling to watch. There is no doubt that this is exploitation TV but it's relatively well-made. It's not trying to take an obvious side but that can also make the movie less dramatic. -
chiumt1 September 2019I knew about this case though I am neither British or Italian. Riveting court investigation and court drama. I don't know how accurate the drama is. But it is fairly good acting. But eventually she seemed to get away with it although she was finally found guilty by the Italian court.
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Remnant_Of_The_Abyss22 February 2011Hayden Panettiere (Amanda Knox) turns in a brilliant performance which makes this worth watching. Also notable is Vincent Riotta (Guiliano Mignini) as the chief investigator and prosecuting attorney.
The movie comes across as fairly impartial, yet with all of the evidence against Knox I became fairly convinced of her guilt after watching this. Prior to this I had assumed she may be innocent.
The portrayal of the investigation is well done and I think it covers all the aspects of the case. However this movie falls down in it's rushed courtroom trial. It is here that so many questions go unanswered. For example, during the investigation, one of Knox's roommates informed Mignini that Amanda had told her that Kercher's throat had been cut. Knox could not have known this from the murder scene where she only had a glance of the body which was covered in a blanket; only the killer (or one of the killers) would have known that. This key testimony is never brought out by the prosecution in the trial.
Overall, this is a decent TV movie that will get you up to speed about many of the details surrounding this real life crime drama. But If you're already well informed about this international case, you'll most likely find this film shallow and not worth your time. -
Amanda is that sweet Seattle girl going off to Italy for a year's study there. She is an honor student and as she accused of murdering her room-mate, we learn that she is quite a character-boozy, joint smoking and in with all the crazy guys in various sex romps. This is a little too much to take as we are not prepared for the transformation we are hearing.
Her ultimate conviction makes us forget that this is also the story of the media and the differences in the laws of a foreign country. It's almost as if you do a crime, make sure it's in your own home country. Too many guys with too many murder suspects mars this film. -
kelsytheellen17 August 2013This film was pretty well done. I do think they could have picked better people for some of the roles, but overall, good acting. Pretty good scripts and a good movie to sit down and engage yourself in. A good movie just to have on in the background while you're doing the dishes or cooking. This case is so fascinating to me, I really cannot say that it was a dull film. It was interesting the whole time and I felt I was part of the film. That I wasn't just watching, but I was connecting with Amanda Knox and feeling her pain. I cringe at some parts because they seem so painful to deal with. I give it a 7 because of these reasons, and because I know it could have been better.
- Kelsy
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YannyRamz7 October 2011Just to point out that I'm not a movie critic, and this is my first review. The job done on this piece, considering it's a LifeTime movie was not that bad. I mean it was meant for TV, not hitting the theaters, and there were not multi-million dollar deals behind it to make it happen. I've always felt, for example with books turned into movies, that they always leave the most important information out. It's so hard to grasp it all and portray it in less than 2hrs (which is, what I think, the average movie's length is). This movie did an OK job, but everything was so rushed. The trial was very rushed, and while at the time of production/recording everything was still 'in the air', there was nothing SET. The movie goes back and forth, and there is so much inconsistency. Also, I'm not sure what side was the movie on or whether it was intended for the viewer to decide. All of the facts that were given the "appropriate" time pointed the finger at Amanda. I got the feeling that she was guilty.
HIV tests, sex, drugs, multiple sexual partners, moving in with Rafaelle (whatever). I know, this is not a documentary, and it was just based on a true story, and did not follow everything that happened exactly as it did, or did it? I just think that it was like a terrible essay, where you argue both points but don't choose your own, and don't have supporting information to back up your point. I did not even get the vibe that some people did about Italians being evil. I just happened to find out about this whole case about a week or two ago, therefore I have not been following. I was recommended to watch this movie to fill me in, but I think it does a very poor job on giving you the details because there aren't ANY. :-/.
It was a big mumble jumble of nothingness, very moving with great performances but terrible script. -
Of all "true stories" I've ever seen, this is by far the worst ever, this film is beyond belief, how come the research is so poor and superficial ?
This film fails at being true,it's inconsistent and poorly researched, if you know something about Mario Spezi and Amanda Knox, then you also know that Giuliano Mignini lacks all ability for common sense and can never seem to provide ANY UNALTERED evidence.
I came across this Amanda's case while reading a book called " the monster of Florence" an amazing chronicle of mediocrity and corruption during one of the most well know cases of serial murders in Italy.
Giuliano Magnini, the prosecutor fabricated evidence, played with it, invented a orgy/drugs/sex/blood sect, (sound familiar?) sent a respected reporter to jail, tapped phones.... was even given a conviction and jail time ... and guess what, due to the system in Italy he can still be a prosecutor and worst, can do the same all over again !
He landed Amanda's case and with it is trying to create a smoke curtain to erase his past, how unfortunate this young lady was, to fall victim to this monster, to get a mentally unstable man as her prosecutor, a man that will do and lie shamelessly to make his point, a man that even refused to accept other man's innocence because it contradicted his case.
The real criminal is Giuliano Mignini, a monster that in the USA will be locked for life for what he has done, yes ... he is the one prosecuting Amanda.
Do yourselves a favor, if you like true crime, read The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi
EDIT : - Well, we all know better now, Amanda is free, a mistake of the justice system in Italy, admitted by them, the evidence was all fabricated or non existing, no DNA just a crazy prosecutor and a lot of crazy people around him. This films hould be removed, burned and re made. -
sienna-71 June 2011Imagine that you are charged with a crime in a foreign country. You are denied a lawyer. You are denied a translator. You are not declared a suspect but you are interrogated as one. You are interrogated by a team of cops meant to break down mafia suspects. You barely speak Italian. You are denied access to your family. You are in shock and you want to help. Your interrogation is not recorded. You are declared a murderer. Your words, which were never recorded, are used against you. There is no tape, there is no video. The cops who declare you a murderer have a big reason to declare so: they said the case was closed. They declared it to the media. The prosecutor announced it to the world...before the murder scene was analyzed by a crime lab. They paraded you through the streets with sirens blaring flashing the victory sign. They posted your photo on the wall as a most wanted criminal next to the worst murderers and criminals known. One person who was charged will be found with an alibi (Lumumba). Two people (Amanda and Raffaele) only have each other as an alibi and their computers are burned so there is no trace of it. One person (Guede) left hair, finger prints, blood, and DNA at the crime scene but it has not been analyzed by a crime lab. No one has identified that sole person who left the evidence at the crime scene and no one seems to care. The case is declared closed. You are placed in solitary confinement and denied your right to a lawyer, contact with your family, or a translator, or to contact your embassy. Next thing you know, you are a witch, a pervert, you have cold eyes, you are without a soul, you are a mastermind criminal, you are the personification of evil, you are the controller of men that you don't know, you are a hater, you are a liar, you are a sex maniac. No one who knows you will corroborate these "facts". There will be no way for you to escape your conviction because those who want you convicted have all the power. They will hide the evidence which your defense lawyers could easily use to get you off. A movie will be made during your trial which will be used to convince people of your guilt. You are screwed and it was great entertainment.... You are an American citizen in a foreign country, you are a child of parents who want to help you. You have no hope because the case has been closed.
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a_baron10 April 2014The murder of Meredith Kercher is already one of the crimes of the century, and will probably remain so for all time because only four people know what happened that fateful night in Perugia: three of them are proved liars, and the fourth must be forever silent.
Like the murder of Mary Phagan and the murder of Beryl Evans and her daughter Geraldine, there are other suspects. At the time, Evans was the only real suspect for the double murder, while the conviction of Leo Frank was based heavily on the testimony of a man who admitted being a party to the crime. Likewise the presence of Rudy Guede at the crime scene in Perugia cannot be ruled out, but does the murder require the presence of any other individual? This film argues compellingly that it does. Since its release there have been further legal developments which will continue for at least the next two years, and what then?
"...Murder On Trial In Italy" is very well researched, and Hayden Panettiere plays the enigmatic Knox to a tee. It is clear from the opening scene that she and her Harry Potter lookalike boyfriend have something to hide. There are no concessions here to the extraordinarily effective public relations campaign conducted by the Knox family, and whatever mistakes the Italian police may have made, the exhaustive forensic and legal analysis made all the way up to to Italy's highest criminal court more than compensates for it.
The film-makers have used a little poetic licence, and may not have solved the mystery entirely, but it is doubtful if anyone else will come closer anytime soon. -
earthinspace20 March 2011This movie promotes several gross distortions which CBS News Crimesider, for one, has identified. Example: in one scene Amanda knew too much prior to her interrogation, such as how her friend Amanda had died. CBS CrimeSider calls this one of the five biggest lies in the film. And yes, it was not in the trial either.
Why was Amanda's interrogation not recorded? Why did the prosecution's forensic team not testify in the trial about any crime scene cleanup? Why did the police, while testing, destroy the hard-drives of the computer which Amanda and Raffaele said they were using that night? Why are so many other facts misreported in newspapers and TV? The movie does not answer any of those questions truthfully, or even raise them. It is mysterious. It seems to be a commercial game. Or maybe they are just "giving Amanda and Raffaele a bad time." In this movie, a blonde Italian-American Hollywood woman acts out a screenplay to portray a red-haired Scottish-American honor student from Seattle as if she were a bratty, suspicious and brazen character. Someone has friends in low places. -
gallagherce10 April 2013I live in Italy and followed this case closely from the very beginning. I thought I knew the case well, but the movie revealed details and sequences of events that I didn't remember.
Now I am not at all surprised that on March 26, 2013, Italy's highest criminal court overturned the acquittal of Knox in the murder of her British roommate and ordered a new trial. A shame that Miss Knox will probably not be present in the courtroom, as she has returned to the States.
I'm glad that I watched the movie. It was well done. I would recommend it to anyone who followed the case as closely as I did. It just reconfirmed what I already believed by adding even more detail. That is, whatever her role in the murder, she was there. yep. -
romanorum120 September 2016At the beginning, American newscasters briefly comment about the dramatic Amanda Knox murder trial. Anderson Cooper blurts out that Knox is a victim and talks about the "Italian media that was stacked against her." These comments set the tone as the Italian postal police (not the carabinieri or the law enforcement police) arrive at the residence of Amanda Knox in Perugia.
On the surface, American Amanda Knox (Hayden Panettiere) was an intelligent and pretty honor roll student. In September 2007, at the age of twenty, she arrived in Perugia, Italy to study languages at the Foreigners' University (Università per Stranieri). With three other young women, she rented an upstairs flat in a countryside house. The other girls were two Italians and British student Meredith Kercher (Amanda Fernando Stevens). While the young women seemed to get along initially, tension brewed between studious Meredith and Amanda over the latter's sexual and hygiene habits. In October, Amanda met Raffaele Sollecito (Paolo Romio), a young Italian man studying computer engineering, and they became lovers almost immediately. Raffaele called her a free spirit: she was sexually promiscuous and smoked weed.
On 1 November 2007 Meredith is found brutally murdered in the locked bathroom of the shared house. The investigative police found various people's actions suspicious, especially the flaws in the alibis which both Amanda and Raffaele had provided. When prosecutor Guiliano Mignini (Vincent Riotta) analyzed the crime scene, he immediately recognized that the "break-in" at one of the bedrooms was staged. After a bloodied fingerprint from African (Ivory Coast) Rudy Guede (Djibril Kébé) was found in the bathroom (his DNA was all over the victim's bedroom), he was arrested in Germany. He opted for a quick trial and was found guilty of murder; he received a 30-year prison sentence (that was later reduced). But Amanda and Raffaele apparently knew something that they did not tell. As Amanda especially had contradictions in her version, the police did not believe her. With events turning against Amanda, her parents, Curt (Clive Walton) and Amanda (Marcia Gay Harden), spent their resources and mounted a blistering campaign against prosecutor Mignini and even the Italian legal system. (They later faced criminal charges of slander in absentia.) The first verdict went against Amanda and Raffaele, who received initial sentences of 26 and 25 years, respectively. Then the verdict was overturned on appeal.
Loaded with dramatizations and flashbacks, the movie does not always make the case clearly. And some facts may not be accurately presented. Whether Amanda was guilty or not guilty is the viewer's option, although it is almost certain that she was in the house on that fateful November night. Was Amanda culpable? Was she or was she not in Raffaele's apartment on the night of Meredith's murder? Why did she initially lie when she said her boss Patrick Lamumba at Le Chic murdered Meredith? Lumumba's skin was saved when his alibi was later confirmed. This author will pass no judgment based upon a movie, although it is thought-provoking. In general, it appears that – despite some mistakes – the Italian forensics and investigative analyses were exhaustive. Italy is a foreign country, after all, with different laws than we do. Its robust culture and society long predate our own.
As the TV movie, made in 2011, does not end the story, several updates to 2014 appear at film's end. Even then, there was a final verdict later (Supreme Court of Cassation, 2015). The final court did not actually clear Amanda, but rather stated that there was not enough evidence to convict her. Mercifully, the case can never go to trial again. Picturesque filming occurred in Rome, not Perugia. There are many fine performances, especially by Hayden Panettiere, Marcia Gay Harden, and Vincent Riotta. -
Michael_Elliott23 July 2011Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy (2011)
** (out of 4)
American girl Amanda Knox (Hayden Panettiere) travels to Italy to study but soon she's accused of murdering her roommate with the assistance of her boyfriend and another guy. Soon Knox's sex life and strange behavior become the key evidence in the trial, which she's convicted of but many seem to think a crooked Prosecutor is to blame. I first heard of this case soon after the real events happened and I remember that for the next year or so every media group was on the side that pointed the finger of guilt at Amanda. I lost track of the case until 60 Minutes did another episode on it and to my shock now everyone was saying that the girl was innocent and being framed by a questionable Prosecutor. This made-for-TV drama from Lifetime doesn't try to pretend to be a documentary and instead it purely wants to show that Amanda is innocent but for some strange reason the movie is never able to do this. There's no doubt that the intent behind this movie is to say that the Italian courts are full of evil people wanting to harm this angel-faced girl from Seattle but I personally need a lot more than just this. Not once are we ever really given an explanation for why Knox is innocent other than the Italians are bad people. This doesn't work for a number of reasons but the biggest one, in terms of this film, is that the Italian members are constantly made to give evil looks to the camera and after a while this just becomes laughable and it's a rather cheap way to try and make them look evil. I kept expecting the director and screenwriter to dress them all in black, put a mask on them and put knives in their hands. Another thing that doesn't work in the picture is that we never really get to understand the case, what actually happened or what might have happened. Yes, there are several re-enactments but they're all handled so poorly that you can't help but feel letdown. As with most "true story" movies, this one here changes a few facts around and tells a few lies of its own so needless to say people shouldn't be watching this thing expecting a documentary. I think the film should have tried to make its case a lot better and all in all it really does feel rushed and all over the place as if the filmmakers weren't sure what they wanted to tell or try to tell. The performances aren't too bad with Panettiere doing a nice job as Knox. I thought she was a lot better when she started to crack from the pressure and she's also quite nice when it comes time to address the courts. Vincent Riotta steals the film as the Prosecutor and Paolo Romio is good in his bit of Amanda's boyfriend. Marcia Gay Harden plays Amanda's mother and she's a tad bit too over-the-top during a few scenes. The story of Amanda Knox is far from over and let's hope a better movie will come out whenever the real story gets solved. -
jasontheterrible8 February 2014Very interesting presentation causing one to shift in belief about innocence or guilt. Initially I thought it was a fluff piece giving Amanda Knox a pass but then it tells the other stories from the other players and a strong picture of guilt emerges. I won't tell you whose. After following the actual trial pretty closely I thought this film presented all sides with precision. I don't know how well it depicts the emotion of the real characters but it seems like everything was well researched. The only fault I can find is Hayden did not really manifest that icy cold stare and personality that has been testified to by numerous players. The guard in the prison and two accusers for example. She was called the "ice maiden" by a guard and anti-social. HP's portrayal is much more girl-next-door and is fairly one-dimensional.
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LoweyJackson10 November 2011This is the first Lifetime movie I have seen. If the quality of "Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy" is any indication, I have misjudged this oft disparaged enterprise. It is respectable entertainment, written with a decent sense of dramatic tension and cast with a good eye for accurate representation. With the exception of the actors playing Rudy Guede and Patrick Lumumba, much of the cast looks the part and many bring a certain skill to their roles. The use of Italian scenery is a bonus. I like the careful line the movie walks; never spelling out exactly what happened and allowing Amanda to seem both sympathetic and possibly complicit. Marcia Gay Harden nails her scenes as Amanda's fretful mother, and the movie manages to make the Italian police seem reasonable in their suspicion. All in all, this is an entertaining movie that adds another dimension to this over-exposed case.
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Please, whatever you do, do not use this movie as a means of deciding whether Amanda Knox and Rafaelle Sollecito are guilty or innocent. There are major factual errors in this movie. This movie makes the claim that a store owner identified Amanda as someone who bought bleach the morning after the murder within days of the murder. This simply is not true. That store owner did not claim Amanda was at his store until 10 months later. And he only made the claim when he was paid for an interview. Furthermore, no other evidence was ever produced to support this claim.
The movie also definitively portrays Rafaelle as not calling the 112 number until after the postal police are there. Again, that is not true. The investigators reached that decision based on the clock on a nearby parking garage that was established to be about 12 minutes off.
This movie plays very fast and loose with the facts. View it as enjoyable lifetime movie fluff if you will, but DO NOT decide Amanda is guilty based on this movie. -
lapqla7 June 2013They claim this is a true story but it contains many inaccuracies. Amanda was not at the crime scene when Meredith died, but in this movie she is. I think many people would like to watch this movie now that there is renewed interest in this case. Lifetime showed this movie once and it got good ratings. However there are some things in the film that are not unlike slander, so I think Lifetime put it away and hoped we would forget about it. I think they could edit out some stuff and voice over some new lines to make the story more true. Otherwise this movie is worth watching and it is a shame nobody will get to see it again. I think we all know what happened to Amanda at the end, but her life has changed a lot since this movie was made.
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artbatista9 September 2015The problem I have with this movie is that the story is entirely one sided, presenting only the view of the prosecutor's team.
And anyone over the age of 2 should know that there's always at least two sides to a story. It leaves me with the feeling that this was a rush job, more geared to capitalize on the immediate media frenzy to capture audience, than to present the truth; and that is very indefensible, as this film deals with a true story, not a fictional Hollywood script.
For the love of God, didn't the producers of this film know that the victim as well as the accused were/are real people, some fighting for their very lives? Shouldn't they at least have tried to get a rounded version of the story down? Instead, they simple took the story provided by a man (Mignini) that has been proved since to be more than a little bit unhinged.
It's a lot easier to get audience with story of sex, demonic rituals, violence and death, than it is with one of questionable law enforcement and plain lunatic characters.
For shame....
Art -
dzell9 September 2011This movie pretends to be a true story but there a 5 things in it that are not only false, they are things could get the screenplay writer sued for libel. To avoid making this a spoiler, I can't go into detail. right now this case is under appeal, and most people who know about the case expect her to be acquitted. What happened was the case that prosecutor Mignini presented was a work of fiction. The reasons why Amanda Knox was convicted are secret, therefore we may never know the true story this movie was based on. The trial scenes were shot inside a real Italian court room, so I guess a deal was made with the producer where we will let you use a courtroom if you agree to insert these 5 things into your movie, and don't ask questions about it. This is too bad because there were many people who appear to have put in a lot of hard work to make this a good movie, and it probably won't ever be shown again because of the controversy. I hope that can re-edit this movie and add some new footage, and turn it into a comedy.
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phd_travel22 August 2011The ongoing saga of Amanda Knox is fascinating and terrifying and unbelievable in the way only a true life story can be. The movie does a good balanced job of putting together the series of events without leaning too much to one side or the other, though personally after watching it I felt quite convinced of her innocence. There was no motive. The evidence against them is so flimsy and quite ridiculous.
Hayden acts quite neutrally, letting you decide for yourself about her behavior. Marcia is alright as the worried mother. Nice on location filming and feel.
Italy looks quite charming here even though Perugia is not the most picturesque town in Tuscany.
How this could have happened in Italy is just shocking. Such a tragedy for all esp Amanda and Raffaele. Hope they get out soon.