A Cry in the Dark

This compelling docudrama recounts the true story of Lindy (Meryl Streep) and Michael Chamberlain (Sam Neill), whose nine-week-old baby was carried off by a dingo at an Australian campsite. It happened on a spring night in 1980. Three years later Lindy Chamberlain was serving a life sentence for murder. What began as a personal tragedy quickly became a media circus, as the public, police officials, and news reporters latched onto the Chamberlain's religious convictions (they were Seventh Day Adventists) and concocted an incredible story of ritual sacrifice. Taken at face value, the story outline smacks of sensationalism, but under the careful direction of Fred Schepisi, augmented by Streep's incredible performance, A Cry in the Dark goes after much more substantial game: the everyday garden variety type of petty evil and maliciousness that resides in us all. Some viewers will see this as the box advertisement proclaims: "A true story of conscience, conviction, and courage." Others will see, as the Chamberlains line up to give interviews in the aftermath of the tragedy, the deeper significance of how the worst aspects of humanity come to the fore when the media spotlight is turned on ordinary people. Highly recommended. (R. Pitman)