My Interview With Hannah Olson, Director of 'Baby God'

Hannah Olson worked at Finding Your Roots, where she heard about a fertility doctor who impregnated his patients with his own sperm without their knowledge. Olson did some research and discovered there were actually several doctors who had done such a thing ... including Quincy Fortier, a fertility specialist out of Las Vegas who died more than a decade ago. And so she made Baby God, which interviews his biological children who weren't aware that he was their dad. 

For MEL, I had a very thoughtful conversation with Olson about sperm donation and women's healthcare. Hope you enjoy.

My Interview With Madison Hamburg, Director of 'Murder on Middle Beach'

“I feel like releasing this series is going to make me whole again,” Madison Hamburg told me. He was talking about Murder on Middle Beach, his four-part documentary about the murder of his mother 10 years ago. The crime has yet to be solved, and the series is his way of processing that grief. He and I spoke about addiction and family over at MEL.

'American Murder: The Family Next Door' Review

In 2018, Shanann Watts and her two young daughters were killed by her husband Chris. How did such a horrible thing occur? The new Netflix documentary American Murder recounts this sad event entirely through her Facebook posts, police bodycam footage, text messages and other media. I understand the intention, but I found the film ghoulish.

'Fear City: New York vs the Mafia' Review

You'd think a story about how prosecutors and the FBI took down the Five Families would be pretty exciting. But in the case of a new Netflix documentary series, you'd be very wrong. For MEL, I reviewed Fear City.

'I'll Be Gone in the Dark' Review

Writer Michelle McNamara was obsessed with uncovering the identity of the Golden State Killer. She died before her book was published, but her friends, colleagues and loved ones helped finish it for her. The new HBO documentary series I'll Be Gone in the Dark chronicles her story and the man who terrorized California for decades. My review is here.

'How to Fix a Drug Scandal' Review

About seven years ago, two separate Massachusetts drug-lab chemists, Annie Dookhan and Sonja Farak, were arrested on charges that they didn't faithfully execute their jobs. (Dookhan allegedly lied in her lab results. Farak allegedly tampered with evidence.) What happened? And what do these cases have to say about the War on Drugs? For MEL, I reviewed the new Netflix documentary How to Fix a Drug Scandal.

'Tiger King' Review

Joe Exotic was an eccentric man living in Oklahoma who started an exotic-animal park. Carole Baskin was a big-cat lover in Florida who thought he was doing more harm than good. Eventually, Exotic was arrested as part of an alleged murder-for-hire plot. The Netflix documentary series Tiger King chronicles the whole strange affair. Of course it's very binge-able ... but does it have to be so classist, too? My review is up at MEL.

My Interview With the Filmmakers of 'The Most Dangerous Animal of All'

I've seen a fair amount of true-crime documentary series. So when I started The Most Dangerous Animal of All, about a man who believes that his father is the Zodiac Killer, I figured I knew where it was going. And then it went another direction. For MEL, I spoke with Kief Davidson and Ross M. Dinerstein about truth, denial and family. Hope you enjoy.