No Way Out But One

This alternately dispiriting and enlightening documentary uses one particularly noteworthy case to illustrate some of the ways that family court can make an abusive domestic situation worse. Attempting to minimize her children's exposure to their abusive father, Holly Collins brought her case before a Minnesota court in 1992, but wound up actually losing young Jennifer and Zachary on the grounds of "parental alienation," a tactic often used by the defense (although discredited by many psychologists). It might seem odd that the court would find in favor of Holly's ex-husband, especially with pages of medical and psychological evidence—including a report on Zachary's skull fracture. But lawyers interviewed in co-directors Garland Waller and Barry Nolan's No Way Out But One say that this kind of outcome is not unusual in a family court, where judges and evaluators adhere to less rigorous standards. For two years, the kids lived with their father and stepmother, but the abuse continued, so Holly worked out a plan of escape that took them through Canada and Mexico en route to Europe, which landed her on the FBI's “Most Wanted” list for child abduction. The filmmakers catch up with her in the Netherlands, where the Dutch government granted her asylum for domestic violence—a process that took years, while Holly and the children lived in a remote refugee center. Nolan and Waller also recount the means by which Holly ultimately obtained justice in the U.S., ending her story on a happy note—although it would take 17 years to get there. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)