Having read about this case, and also having seen the pseudo-documentary "Catfish", I was drawn to view this film. It is a documentary; the OTHER 2012 film also called "Tallhotblond" is a fictional treatment of the story directed by Courtney Cox. I have not seen that, but I can't imagine it could possibly be done more poorly than this.
The worst part? It is "narrated" by an actor pretending to be the victim, which of course means fictionalized invented dialog that never happened. OK in a fiction treatment, NOT OK in a serious documentary. The death of this innocent young man is an appalling tragedy, but putting words in his mouth is just lame. The SECOND worst part is how much of the content is interviews with a psychologist who had NO (zero!) involvement with the case, never met any of the participants or interviewed them, and is simply pontificating in a moral/emotional way he is not entitled to about the case. You might as well have spent time interviewing my Aunt Tilly.
A lot of time is given to the murderer -- "marinesniper" was his internet name -- who is self-serving and making excuses and blaming others for the fact that he MURDERED an innocent man that he incorrectly believed was a love rival for an internet flirtation with a woman he idiotically thought was really a "tall hot blond" and only 18. Of course, she was no such thing. He'd never even met her in person.
The whole film basically is a blame fest on the lady (Mary), a 46 year old, lonely housewife in a failing marriage, who disguised herself as her attractive young daughter Jessie while online. This is treated as if she herself were a criminal for indulging in what I am sure seemed like harmless, pretend flirting.
Not one person (the shooter, the victim's family, the pontificating psychologist, the woman's ex-husband) seem to have considered that a homely, lonely middle-aged woman could have probably never gotten flirtatious attention and attracted sexual desire WITHOUT some kind of false internet persona. BTW, this is the exact situation of the film "Catfish" (though nobody was murdered or harmed in anyway in that story) -- some young men were FOOLED by a middle-aged, plain-looking lady who was enjoying some sexy internet flirting. That woman was ALSO using the persona of her teenage daughter (but with photographs of a total stranger she found online).
What this really tells us is NOT about the horrors of the internet -- where what you think are friends are phonies -- but shows us just how miserable life can be if you are an older woman, perhaps not physically attractive or overweight. You have no options for romance in real life, and to get flirtations or romance even on the internet, you must lie. Had Mary Sheiler tried to attract "marinesniper" (a lonely guy her own age!), he would not have spent 2 minutes willing to talk to her, because she was not "tall, nor blond, nor hot" enough to spike his interest.
Are homely, plain or overweight women in mid-life condemned therefore to sterile lives of total loneliness and rejection? That seems to be the conclusion of this documentary, which has the nerve to blame Mary (who never faced any charges whatsoever) for the murder of young Brian! and let the real murderer off the hook. On what planet does a jilted lover (no matter how deluded about his "loved one") get the right to MURDER anyone he sees as a rival? Surprisingly, this was DIRECTED by a woman (Barbara Shroeder). I wonder how old she was when she made this film, because she is utterly lacking in sympathy for this woman -- who lost her marriage, her husband and her relationship to her own daughter because of her deceptive flirtations online (most of which did not lead to any murder or mayhem). Her judgment was awful, her use of her daughter's photos pretty sleazy -- but she is a sad and lonely case. Not a killer! BTW: I can't think of a cheaper shot than to use so many photos of Ms. Sheiler, with the intent of letting viewers know "she's a real DOG, isn't she? nobody any man would ever desire".
On top of this, the film is painfully slow and relies on showing typed instant messages rather than any action or investigation. Worst example of misogynist reportage I have seen in a very long time. Avoid.
The worst part? It is "narrated" by an actor pretending to be the victim, which of course means fictionalized invented dialog that never happened. OK in a fiction treatment, NOT OK in a serious documentary. The death of this innocent young man is an appalling tragedy, but putting words in his mouth is just lame. The SECOND worst part is how much of the content is interviews with a psychologist who had NO (zero!) involvement with the case, never met any of the participants or interviewed them, and is simply pontificating in a moral/emotional way he is not entitled to about the case. You might as well have spent time interviewing my Aunt Tilly.
A lot of time is given to the murderer -- "marinesniper" was his internet name -- who is self-serving and making excuses and blaming others for the fact that he MURDERED an innocent man that he incorrectly believed was a love rival for an internet flirtation with a woman he idiotically thought was really a "tall hot blond" and only 18. Of course, she was no such thing. He'd never even met her in person.
The whole film basically is a blame fest on the lady (Mary), a 46 year old, lonely housewife in a failing marriage, who disguised herself as her attractive young daughter Jessie while online. This is treated as if she herself were a criminal for indulging in what I am sure seemed like harmless, pretend flirting.
Not one person (the shooter, the victim's family, the pontificating psychologist, the woman's ex-husband) seem to have considered that a homely, lonely middle-aged woman could have probably never gotten flirtatious attention and attracted sexual desire WITHOUT some kind of false internet persona. BTW, this is the exact situation of the film "Catfish" (though nobody was murdered or harmed in anyway in that story) -- some young men were FOOLED by a middle-aged, plain-looking lady who was enjoying some sexy internet flirting. That woman was ALSO using the persona of her teenage daughter (but with photographs of a total stranger she found online).
What this really tells us is NOT about the horrors of the internet -- where what you think are friends are phonies -- but shows us just how miserable life can be if you are an older woman, perhaps not physically attractive or overweight. You have no options for romance in real life, and to get flirtations or romance even on the internet, you must lie. Had Mary Sheiler tried to attract "marinesniper" (a lonely guy her own age!), he would not have spent 2 minutes willing to talk to her, because she was not "tall, nor blond, nor hot" enough to spike his interest.
Are homely, plain or overweight women in mid-life condemned therefore to sterile lives of total loneliness and rejection? That seems to be the conclusion of this documentary, which has the nerve to blame Mary (who never faced any charges whatsoever) for the murder of young Brian! and let the real murderer off the hook. On what planet does a jilted lover (no matter how deluded about his "loved one") get the right to MURDER anyone he sees as a rival? Surprisingly, this was DIRECTED by a woman (Barbara Shroeder). I wonder how old she was when she made this film, because she is utterly lacking in sympathy for this woman -- who lost her marriage, her husband and her relationship to her own daughter because of her deceptive flirtations online (most of which did not lead to any murder or mayhem). Her judgment was awful, her use of her daughter's photos pretty sleazy -- but she is a sad and lonely case. Not a killer! BTW: I can't think of a cheaper shot than to use so many photos of Ms. Sheiler, with the intent of letting viewers know "she's a real DOG, isn't she? nobody any man would ever desire".
On top of this, the film is painfully slow and relies on showing typed instant messages rather than any action or investigation. Worst example of misogynist reportage I have seen in a very long time. Avoid.