Murder In Big Horn

Moving. ... Benally and Galkin tell the story in the format of the true-crime genre while also making it something more than that.

Access is key to the doc’s success. By amplifying those voices on the ground and capturing expert opinions on the legal framework and journalistic responses to the cases, Benally and Galkin strike that balance between emotional and informative. The directors deliver a layered portrait.

“Murder in Big Horn” is at its best when it digs into the historical factors that have led us here, including colonization efforts that sought to tear down the female leaders of Indigenous communities and the kidnapping of children.

It’s a well-made series that exposes corruption, trafficking and injustices perpetrated on families.

If this show seems one-sided, its villains edited to appear almost cartoonish, that’s a fair criticism. But if these [law enforcement] dudes aren’t willing to speak for themselves here, maybe that’s on them. ... But in any event, Murder In Big Horn provides education on and promotes awareness of a pressing issue facing Native American women, and that feat alone makes it something of a must-watch.

At times it’s poignant, at times it points to seeds of provocative ideas, and it’s generally righteous in its message. But it’s also an ill-formed jumble, dominated by passion.

Nobody cracks a case, or tells a very coherent or useful story. ... No one currently employed by the FBI, BIA or the various police departments offers any official comment on the cases, which makes it easier for implications to go unanswered. ... At the same time, the non-indigenous subjects who do speak aren't sufficiently grilled. ... It's not until episode 3 that the subjects making these arguments concede that the crimes being discussed may well be Crow-on-Crow, a little late for objectivity.