Few films hit with the emotional force of Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father. What begins as a memorial to murdered doctor Andrew Bagby transforms into a real-life horror story about justice gone horribly wrong.
The documentary’s genius lies in how it makes you hope against hope. Even knowing the tragic outcome, you’ll find yourself desperately wishing the system will wake up – that someone, anyone will intervene before Shirley Turner can harm the baby she’s carrying. The Bagbys’ heroic efforts to save their grandson through legal channels become increasingly heartbreaking as every avenue fails.
When the final tragedy strikes, it’s not just the act itself that destroys you – it’s the knowledge that dozens of professionals saw the danger and did nothing. Dear Zachary ultimately becomes a searing indictment of how society protects abusers over victims, with consequences too terrible to bear.
