Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

Faking a Murderer

Play trailer 2:15 Poster for Faking a Murderer 2020 1h 36m Comedy Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
Tomatometer 3 Reviews 40% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
Faking a Murderer follows two filmmakers on their noble yet perhaps misguided quest to track down a seedy-looking stranger they've discovered online who -- in a disturbing video -- seemingly confesses to a murder. Or at least that's what they think. Seeing the popularity of true crime shows, they decide to try and turn this discovery into their own killer hit. With the support (both moral and financial) of a distributor, Stuart Stone and Adam Rodness set off on their journey to try and track down this elusive creep. When they bring the video to law enforcement, they're told -- repeatedly -- that it's really not much to go on, and they're putting a lot of time and energy into what essentially is a fool's errand. Determined to make this work, they flex, stretch, and break their budget in pursuit of a hit new crime story, but are they in over their heads?

Critics Reviews

View All (3) Critics Reviews
Dev Shea Nightmarish Conjurings If you are ready and willing to chug-chug-a-chug your way through nearly an hour of puffed-up information similar to a college paper on a subject you BARELY studied, it’s worth it to get to the gooey center at the end of the film. Sep 13, 2022 Full Review Josh Bell Crooked Marquee The story abruptly turns so dark that the meager humor is completely lost. Rated: C Aug 10, 2021 Full Review Bobby LePire Film Threat If the film sounds like something you'll like, chances are you will. Rated: 8/10 Aug 2, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (3) audience reviews
the s Was really disappointed in this one after getting hyped on the trailer and heating some buzz on the festival circuit. Right from the beginning, I had a bad feeling. Here's the thing about mockumentaries: to make them work, they have to be impromptu and improvised. And not just that, it has to be done by masters of timing and comedy. Christopher Guest is a genius of the genre and he's a master of assembling a cast to make it work. It either works or it doesn't. And if it doesn't, it fails big typically. Without getting personal, the 2 guys are really bad at improv. And it's clear that most of it is scripted. Suspension of disbelief is what made Spinal Tap work. And the ability for the stars to improvise conversation is what allows your mind to believe it and buy into it. And then the humor seeps in along the way where the viewer isn't sure If it's real, If they're supposed to laugh, etc. With Faking a Murderer, there's no charm, there's not enough subtlety to blur the lines between scripted and unscripted. The main actors try way to hard to make it look real, which ironically makes it painfully obvious that it's scripted all the way. When the directors speak in the interviews, they talk over top of one another…their comedic timing is just really bad and it kills the suspension of disbelief and eliminates that line between real and fake. If you like the type of movie where you know it's scripted and fake, you might enjoy this. I was expecting more of a mockumentary ala Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, etc and it was absolutely nothing like that style and approach. Others may love this for what it is…I just think there is a chasm between what the trailer suggests it is and what it really is. Just not my thing. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Such a good movie. Hilarious and unexpected. as a true crime fan I loved how it poked fun at the genre. SO many twists! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Audience Member I don't particularly like movies where I'm embarrassed by everything the main characters do but enduring all that was pretty worthwhile. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/18/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Faking a Murderer

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis Faking a Murderer follows two filmmakers on their noble yet perhaps misguided quest to track down a seedy-looking stranger they've discovered online who -- in a disturbing video -- seemingly confesses to a murder. Or at least that's what they think. Seeing the popularity of true crime shows, they decide to try and turn this discovery into their own killer hit. With the support (both moral and financial) of a distributor, Stuart Stone and Adam Rodness set off on their journey to try and track down this elusive creep. When they bring the video to law enforcement, they're told -- repeatedly -- that it's really not much to go on, and they're putting a lot of time and energy into what essentially is a fool's errand. Determined to make this work, they flex, stretch, and break their budget in pursuit of a hit new crime story, but are they in over their heads?
Director
Stuart Stone
Producer
Adam Rodness, Stuart Stone
Screenwriter
Adam Rodness, Stuart Stone
Production Co
Hollywood Suite, 57 Films, Breakthrough Entertainment, 5'7 Films
Genre
Comedy, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 6, 2021
Runtime
1h 36m