MovieChat Forums > Manson (2009) Discussion > a few thoughts on this show...

a few thoughts on this show...

posted 15 years ago by davegahan1976
8 replies | jump to latest

when the killers entered the tate house, tex slit the screen in the nursery. then he went in the house, made his way to the front door, and let katie and sadie in the front. in this version, it is the back door he slits the screen in, and they all (except linda) enter this way.

also, once in the house, tex woke voytek and held him at gunpoint while katie and susan brought sharon, jay, and abigail from the bedrooms to the living room. in this version, the shooting begins quickly once the killers enter the house.

it seems these newer manson documentaries (this one, helter skelter '04, van webber's manson family) don't nail how plain looking the girls were. also, i think manson was poorly cast. jeremy davies was even a better choice than this guy...

it was interesting to hear from kasabian and gypsy, though gypsy was on another tv special last month. too bad they can't track down someone like nancy pitman or sandra good.

i was also a little surprised that they included the graphic crime scene photos, especially the one of sharon tate. i guess it is the only way to remind everyone of how brutal and senseless these murders were.

[–] skin_job 15 years ago

The inaccuracies bothered me a bit also. The most obvious one was giving the incorrect location of Spahn Ranch as "Benedict Canyon". It was located in Chatsworth, which is nowhere near Benedict Canyon which was where the Tate house was located. But then, you have to realize that this documentary is, for the most part, from Kasabian's point of view, and since she never saw what went on inside, it makes sense not to be too detailed about that part of it. I was surprised to see how they showed the incident where Manson showed up at Cielo Drive before the murders, though. They were all in the dining room eating when Manson showed up and Tate's photographer friend shooed him away, not at the pool as in the doc. That's how Sharon Tate saw Manson - through the front window of the dining room. Oh well, artistic license.

I didn't expect them to show those crime scene photos either, especially the full-length one of Tate. At least they showed them in Black & White. The detailed color versions are even more shocking to look at.

Overall I was impressed with this show. It could've been more accurate in its recreations, but the important part was hearing Linda Kasabian describe her experience in her own words. Bugliosi was good too, but I've heard him say what he said here several times before, in almost the exact same words.

Whatever you do...don't stare at the midget

[–] davegahan1976 15 years ago

it was odd the way the show presented the murders, with the re-enactments interlaced with the bugliosi, share, and kasabian interviews. good point on the hatami/tate/manson interaction, this documentary was way off on that point.

it seems like bugliosi is getting a little tired of telling the story.

[–] skin_job 15 years ago

Yeah, Vince has told and re-told this story so many times it's as if he could do it in his sleep. But he does do an excellent job getting his points across in a clear, concise way.

Maybe it's just me, but if I was doing a documentary like this I would make sure every little detail was completely accurate, including the re-enactments being shot at actual locations or exact reproductions of the actual locations. Seeing things like the LaBiancas arriving at their house without the boat in tow, and showing a "Tate House" with a completely different layout and surroundings than the actual Tate house as it was in 1969, just drives me nuts.

Whatever you do...don't stare at the midget

[–] NickiDrea 15 years ago

Kasabian and Adkins were not attractive, but I always thought Leslie Van Houten was beautiful. Not a surprise, she was a homecoming queen. As a adult, even in prison, she is still quite pretty. She's still a murderer though.

"Proud to be a PD!!!"

[–] johnlsullivan 14 years ago

I was also bugged by minor things that probably shouldn't have mattered, like the way they showed the Frykowski and Folger murders on the other side of the swimming pool. Any fool with a dog-earred copy of "Helter Skelter" could have pointed that out to the director...

[–] PACman66 14 years ago

I thought Sandra Good was the best lookin' Manson girl... In the late 60's/early 70's, anyway... Seems she's the most nutzo too... Doesn't she still subscibe to Manson's ideology?

Trust me,
Swan

[–] tallpall 14 years ago

acting was pretty good. the girls were hot

[–] terrywatt69 8 years ago

The only real point of interest for me with Manson 2009 is the actual interviews with Kasabian and Share.

Outside of the actual crime scene pics flashed onscreen, the reenactments themselves were so riddled with mistakes. Very unimpressive, considering this was a History Channel documentary. I mean, all these various Manson docudramas haven't been particularly impressive on the reenactment front anyway, however most of them weren't History Channel productions. So you expect the standard to be a bit higher.