Dutch filmmaker Jaap van Hoewijk's documentary centers on two families who await the execution of a convicted murderer. In 1998, Elroy Chester sexually assaulted two sisters and fatally shot their uncle. After 15 years on death row, Elroy finally faces execution by lethal injection in Huntsville, TX, on June 12, 2013. As the film's title suggests, both Chester's family and the rape victims and their families here spend grueling hours waiting for the scheduled execution time. Also on hand are anti-death-penalty protestors ready for yet another public demonstration, as well as the inevitable gaggle of reporters and TV camera crews on hand to document the attendant street theater. But, strangely, as the countdown to Elroy's execution comes closer, a curious lack of intensity settles in. The emotional damage caused by Chester's crimes does not reawaken old wounds among his surviving victims and their family—who have moved on with their lives and are simply waiting for long-overdue closure—and Chester's kin seem ruefully resigned to his upcoming death. Neither pro nor con on the issue of capital punishment, Killing Time is remarkable for capturing the honest reactions to the execution of a convicted murderer—a going-through-the-motions process that seems to ultimately benefit no one. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)
Killing Time
(2014) 55 min. DVD: $99.95: public libraries & high schools; $395: colleges & universities. The Cinema Guild. PPR. ISBN: 0-7815-1482-1. Volume 30, Issue 1
Killing Time
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