An American Crime

12/7/20071h 37m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ The true story of a child's punishment that became a woman's crime. ~

Overview:

The true story of suburban housewife Gertrude Baniszewski, who kept a teenage girl locked in the basement of her Indiana home during the 1960s.

Director:

Tommy O'Haver

Status:

Released

Language:

English

Buget:

$2,000,000.00

Revenue:

$0.00

Key words:

child abuse
rape
carnival
based on true story
dysfunctional family
basement
murder
teenage girl
torture
church
single mother
true crime
watching tv
jumping on a bed
1960s
mistreatment
female child abuser

Cast

Elliot Page

~ as ~

Sylvia Likens

Catherine Keener

~ as ~

Gertrude Baniszewski

Hayley McFarland

~ as ~

Jennifer Faye 'Jennie' Likens

Nick Searcy

~ as ~

Lester Likens

Romy Rosemont

~ as ~

Betty Likens

Ari Graynor

~ as ~

Paula Baniszewski

Scout Taylor-Compton

~ as ~

Stephanie Baniszewski

Tristan Jarred

~ as ~

Johnny Baniszewski

Hannah Leigh

~ as ~

Shirley Baniszewski

Bradley Whitford

~ as ~

Prosecutor

View full cast & crew

Reviews (2)

AG
Andres Gomez
Written 12 year(s) ago
5
Very good performances from Ellen Page and Catherine Keener for quite an empty movie.

Could have been done much, much better with a proper direction and script.
H
HikariWS
Written 4 year(s) ago
~~
Nice point of view of the torturers.

It'd be easy to just show them as evil demons having fun doing bad things. I liked how the script portrays what they might had thought, sometimes very subtle.

As the guy who had a crush on her and was rejected while she was still free, and later marked her. Paula who was pregnant and projected all her issues on Sylvia and wanted her to be seen as a prostitute. And Gertrudes herself who was old and ugly and probably was envy of Sylvia.

Such possible motivations were shown without stimulating us to feel anger for them.