"From award-winning documentary filmmaker Jean-Xavier de Lestrade comes this real-life, gripping courtroom drama that chronicles the case of author Michael Peterson, who stood trial in 2003 for the murder of his wife, Kathleen. With unprecedented access to Peterson's lawyers, his family and others involved in the proceedings, de Lestrade offers viewers an intimate look at the judiciary process and the mystery surrounding this high-profile case."

This is one of the most riveting movies/documentaries I have ever seen. It has plot-twists you just won't believe, proving fact is stranger than fiction and people are much more complex than we could imagine looking at them from the outside.

If you like mysteries, I think you will enjoy this. It transcends those true crime shows on television. One of the themes is how expensive our American justice system is for the accused. The same filmakers won an Academy Award for "Murder on a Sunday Morning" about a young black man's experience with the justice system: how poor people fare. The legal bills for this Peterson defense exceeded a million dollars and it is fascinating to see all the steps taken to prepare for this murder trial, including the defense lawyers going to Germany. I was just sure they flew first class, but the little glimpse of them during the flight looked like coach, so good for them. Of course that could have been the connecting flight from Rahleigh-Durham airport to Dulles.

Contained in a two-DVD set, the story is divided into 8 parts, so maybe it aired on TV at some point, but somehow having the parts to break it up serves to enhance the story telling. At the end of the first episode I didn't realize there was more and felt cheated, but then the next one started up and the next followed it, drawing me deeper and deeper into the mystery and the intrigue. I don't know how it turns out (although I could look it up on the Internet) because the second DVD will arrive in today's mail, I hope.