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10 out of 11 people found the following review useful: Impressive!, 29 December 2004 Author: Spaceygirl (melanie.diesel@bbraun.co.za) from Johannesburg, South Africa
Having seen this without knowing all the hoopla surrounding the lead character, indeed without even knowing that it was based on real-life events, I must say I am impressed. "Murder in Greenwich" is an above average production for a made-for-TV movie - the acting is uniformly great, Christopher Meloni in particular putting in a stand-out performance and the teen actors excel in what are difficult roles. The idea of the dead girl narrating the movie is a stroke of genius which elevates the movie from merely good to excellent. The script is exemplary for what is essentially movie-of-the-week fodder and the cinematography is beautiful.
7 out of 8 people found the following review useful: Excellent movie, 24 November 2002 Author: otisburg from San Francisco
I'd heard of the case, but hadn't really paid attention during the whole hoopla of Fuhrman writing the book, Skakel being arrested, etc. However, this movie did an excellent job of detailing Martha, the Skakel brothers, the murder, Mark Fuhrman's involvement and the results of his investigation. I especially liked the flashback scenes with Martha talking about her last summer. The actress who played her literally glowed with life and made it even more poignant that the real Martha was probably like that. It made Martha seem like a real person rather than a victim. I'd definitely recommend watching this.
7 out of 9 people found the following review useful: A Real-Life Murder Case, 11 April 2006 Author: Lechuguilla from Dallas, Texas
Martha Moxley, the fifteen-year-old daughter of a wealthy Connecticut woman, was found clubbed to death near her home in October of 1975. The case received national attention because one of Moxley's neighbors was the Skakel family, related to Ethel Kennedy. Indeed, Martha was a friend of two of the Skakel boys: Tommy and Michael. For over twenty years Moxley's murder went unsolved.Enter Mark Fuhrman, the infamous L.A. cop who figured heavily in the O.J. Simpson trial. In the late 1990s, Fuhrman set out to investigate this unsolved murder, for the purpose of writing a book, considered by some to be a troubling motive. The result of Fuhrman's efforts, in addition to the publication of his book, was the indictment and conviction of a suspect in the Moxley case, some 25 years after the killing.With flashbacks to 1975, "Murder In Greenwich" tells the story of this well-known case, from the POV of Fuhrman. The plot is clear, concise, and easy to follow. Martha Moxley's "ghost" (Maggie Grace) narrates part of the story, a plot device I happened not to care for. The film implies both a cover-up and botched police work in the original 1975 investigation. A big part of Fuhrman's efforts centers on re-establishing the time of death. Fuhrman, himself, comes across in the film as irritating, arrogant, and an opportunist.The most interesting thing about this film is that the story is real. It is not fictional. Real-life incidents usually, though not always, make for engaging viewing. The film has excellent color cinematography, and the production values are high. Acting is quite good, especially the performance of Liddy Holloway, as Martha's mother.I make no judgments one way or the other about Fuhrman's personal reasons for his work on this case. The movie itself I found to be well-made, except for scenes showing palm trees in Connecticut. The story was interesting, easy to follow, and had an outcome I had previously been unaware of.
5 out of 6 people found the following review useful: The System Works Differently for the Rich, 24 January 2008 Author: Claudio Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
In 1974, the teenager Martha Moxley (Maggie Grace) moves to the high-class area of Belle Haven, Greenwich, Connecticut. On the Mischief Night, eve of Halloween, she was murdered in the backyard of her house and her murder remained unsolved. Twenty-two years later, the writer Mark Fuhrman (Christopher Meloni), who is a former LA detective that has fallen in disgrace for perjury in O.J. Simpson trial and moved to Idaho, decides to investigate the case with his partner Stephen Weeks (Andrew Mitchell) with the purpose of writing a book. The locals squirm and do not welcome them, but with the support of the retired detective Steve Carroll (Robert Forster) that was in charge of the investigation in the 70's, they discover the criminal and a net of power and money to cover the murder."Murder in Greenwich" is a good TV movie, with the true story of a murder of a fifteen years old girl that was committed by a wealthy teenager whose mother was a Kennedy. The powerful and rich family used their influence to cover the murder for more than twenty years. However, a snoopy detective and convicted perjurer in disgrace was able to disclose how the hideous crime was committed. The screenplay shows the investigation of Mark and the last days of Martha in parallel, but there is a lack of the emotion in the dramatization. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): Not Available
5 out of 7 people found the following review useful: Excellent Movie!, 25 September 2005 Author: BreanneB from United States
I thought this movie was excellent. Jon Foster is one of my top favorite actors, he was perfect as Micheal Skakel. I found everything about it to be great, acting, costumes, production, directing, photography, script and music, etc.Spoilers Coming Up! You Have Been Warned!Martha Moxley, who they had tell the story in the movie was bludgeoned to death by her violent troubled neighbor Micheal Skakel. Micheal did this out of jealousy of his brother Tommy when Martha rejected him and took Tommy instead. Thankfully though, they caught him years later and he was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison. Although, I think he should have been sentenced to "natural life" without the possibility of parole.Kudos to the cast, crew and filmmakers. Two thumbs way up.
2 out of 2 people found the following review useful: Disappointing, 4 April 2005 Author: bfan from Ohio
*** This review may contain spoilers ***
I was so disappointed in this movie. I am very familiar with the case, having read not only Mark Fuhrman's book but also the far superior "A Wealth of Evil: The True Story of the Murder of Martha Moxley in America's Richest Community" by Timothy Dumas. Anyone who watches MURDER IN GREENWICH should be aware they're watching The Mark Fuhrman story, not the Martha Moxley story. This film is nothing more than an ego-trip for Fuhrman. Just watch his character strut around as if he is the second coming (yes, even being ogled by women). The actors playing the kids look way too old for their roles and the flashbacks to the 1970s are totally unconvincing. If there is any hero to this story, it's Martha's family, her mother Dorothy and brother John. They kept this case alive for two decades before Fuhrman walked into it in order to make a name for himself. They, and Martha, deserve to have the true story told.
3 out of 4 people found the following review useful: OKAY, But Could Have Been Better, 20 November 2002 Author: fabledmabel from Orange County, CA.
I really admire Mark Furhman for making this movie, and it was fairly well done, but could have been a little more accurate as far as the characters went. The flashbacks were only possible from Martha's eyes, hence the intersessions where "Martha" described the events from the past - I assume from the real Martha's diary. But Maggie Grace was too old to be convincing as the dead Martha because she appeared to be a teen model from the magazine "Seventeen" or something, especially with those teeth caps, which I found very difficult to ignore as they stuck out like sore thumbs. NO WAY could she pass as a fifteen year-old! Plus the fact that the real Martha was a rather innocent, fresh-faced youth that was cute, but in no way could have been a model. Other than that, the other characters were really great, especially Jon Foster as Michael Skakel. Toby Moore, who played Tommy Skakel, was good as well, but should have worn a blond, permed wig (instead of the "shag" wig) that would have been WAY more realistic as that's how Tommy Skakel's real hairstyle of the time was.All in all, I did like the movie, and it really elicited sympathy for Michael Skakel who, as is realistic, was a troubled boy who didn't really know what he was doing back in 1975 when he reacted in rage and attacked Martha Moxley. I have it on my PVR and will watch it repeatedly.
1 out of 1 people found the following review useful: Mark Furhman's Great Crime Book Sucessfully Brought to TV, 16 November 2002 Author: georgesh3 from Danville, Virginia, USA
This great TV movie told of the 1975 murder of Martha Moxley in Greenwich, Connecticut by a nephew of Ethel Kennedy. The use of the "ghost" of Martha to provide some of the details was very effective and added a lot of heart to the story. Christopher Meloni seemed to capture the personality of Mark Fuhrman very well. Furhman, who got so much underserved bad publicity in the O.J. Simpson trial has certainly vindicated himself by his contribution of bringing the killer to justice after about 27 years.
2 out of 3 people found the following review useful: Interesting local town story that captured the United States' attention., 21 April 2006 Author: MondaysMom16 from United States
too bad they showed palm trees that could not be more inaccurate for Connecticut in October ... this was filmed in New Zealand ...This Martha Moxley case had been 'cold' for 20-25 years ... her family worked hard to keep it alive and when Mark Fuhrman decided he did not want to be remembered only for his involvement in the Nicole Simpson case .... which could have been deleterious to his reputation (if it already hadn't)... Anyway, he followed along as the police tried to get enough information to write a book. ... with the use of flashbacks we can see the relationships Martha formed .... Unattended boys coming of age without a mother around to help and a dad who was always looped ...Plus the fact that they portray the real Martha as if she were a movie star... she was a cute sweet girl next door type. Other than that, the other characters were really great, especially Jon Foster and Toby Moore, who played as Michael Skakel and Tommy Skakel respectively. They were good as well, the costumers had to keep it all in the 70s look and back up to the 90s ....It kept my interest even when I caught on about the Skakel guy ....
This really told a story...whether completely factual or not., 17 November 2002 Author: mightymo-2 from Hawaii
I was quite impressed with the narration by Martha and how it pulled on the emotional heartstrings of the audience as well as how it must have impacted the family. The forward-backward motion of the storyline was well-done, and normally I don't enjoy movies with the flash-back/flash-forward effects. I felt during the whole evolution of the movie that "surely Tommy did it". It leaves you with a sense of how these people lived their lives almost totally devoid of each other and the consequences of not having any desire to answer the question, "It's 10 o'clock. Do you know where your children are?" And furthermore, "What the heck are they doing?"!! Or "Do I care?"!! Rich, spoiled brats literally getting away with murder. Or so they thought.......
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