After the intriguing The Girl in the Picture released by Netflix last week, this week the OTT platform is home to My Daughter’s Killer aka L’assassin de ma fille– another documentary that brings out the horrors and loopholes of society. Directed by Antoine Tassin, the French docu-film is 1 hour 24 minutes long.
The cast of the film includes real-life people associated with the case at hand which includes interviews from André Bamberski, footage of Danièle Gonnin and testimonies and statements by lawyers, victims, journalists and several other people affected by the case. The film has audio as well as subtitles in both English and French.
– Netflix’s L’assassin de ma fille aka My Daughter’s Killer Review Does Not Contain Spoilers –
My Daughter’s Killer: Revenge or Justice?
Netflix’s latest documentary film tells the story of Kalinka Bamberski, how she was the victim of voluntary manslaughter which led to her father, André Bamberski to seek out justice for her and go to some extremes that one can only imagine.
The documentary jumps right into putting Mr. Bamberski’s face up for us, who recounts the death of his daughter and the circumstances surrounding it. Kalinka was 14 years old when she died in Lindau, under the care of her mother and stepfather. The initial report for Kalinka’s death was that she was feeling unwell due to the July heat and wanted to get a quick tan when her stepfather, Dr. Krombach injected her with Kobalt-Ferrlecit to help with it.
This, however, led to Kalinka being unresponsive due to which Dr. Krombach gave the emergency authorities a call and attempted to revive/resurrect her by allegedly administering various injections. In the end though, Kalinka could not be saved.
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What initially looked and sounded like a death by natural cause turned into something mischievous and horrifying when fragments of the case which were irregular started to surface. This included how Kalinka’s autopsy report mentioned tears in her genital area, Dr. Krombach’s unclear account of what exactly happened to Kalinka and more. André Bamberski took the situation into his own hands when his repetitive cry for help about his daughter being raped and murdered by Krombach went unheard.
However, what entailed in Mr. Bamberski’s plan to bring his Kalinka to justice violated certain accords and made him do something unimaginable by the end. With no one to trust around him, My Daughter’s Killer accounts for Mr. Bramberski’s struggle and fight to get justice served by making ends meet.
My Daughter’s Killer takes into account both sides of the coin. Although we know the final verdict and we get to witness what led to what, there is representation from both sides of the story. We not only have Mr. Bamberski and his lawyers tell us how the case progressed, but there is also a tackle done by Dr. Krombach’s lawyers on the allegations put against the doctor. Of course, this case isn’t as complicated as Michael Peterson’s Staircase story that it requires weighing in on both sides. Yet equal representation gives the audience more ground to think and believe.
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However, the documentary film fails to ring one bell- the bell of sympathy. You can empathize with Mr. Bamberski’s story and this fight, but the lack of sympathy for Kalinka is bothersome as her father becomes the focus of the story than her memory driving him to make different worlds meet. Segments exploring Kalinka’s growing up, and the kind of person she was, are rare, which sometimes makes you think that what Mr. Bamberski was seeking might not be justice but, revenge cloaked in the garment of justice.
Yet the documentary is a powerful call for people to understand certain aspects of society- doctors are not Gods, they can very well be wrong and evil. The story also brings to light the ever-suppressed voices of women and how they are often dismissed or not taken seriously when it comes to sexual crimes committed against them.
My Daughter’s Killer: Final Verdict
Overall, My Daughter’s Killer is a good documentary to reflect on but, it might not just be the best in terms of the direction, narrative and editing, which is what made it an average title that one can even choose to skip through. What the documentary is trying to say is loud and clear but, how it is saying those things, often makes the audiences dicey, which is what puts it behind in the brilliant list of documentaries the OTT is famous for releasing.
You can watch My Daughter’s Killer aka L’assassin de ma fille now on Netflix.
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