CNN
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The primary thought listening to about “The Jinx – Half Two” was, what might they probably do for an encore – reanimate the late Robert Durst and have him confess on a sizzling mic once more? After just a few episodes, although, this nine-years-later continuation once more proves fairly compelling, thanks not solely to the late Durst’s idiosyncrasies however the “Star Wars” cantina of strange characters that surrounded him.
Director Andrew Jarecki establishes that he sees this as an extension of what got here earlier than by numbering the six episodes as chapters seven by 12. Lest anybody have forgotten, the unique docuseries shocked audiences when Durst, after having been seemingly caught writing a damning observe, went to the bathroom and was recorded saying “killed all of them, in fact,” which many took as his confession relating to the disappearance of his spouse Kathie and subsequent homicide of his buddy, Susan Berman.
Whereas nearly nothing might match that second, Jarecki does what he can, together with footage of fascinating events watching a screening of the ultimate episode of “The Jinx” at his house in 2015, capturing their jaws-agape responses. He additionally has entry to authorities interviewing Durst and others, in addition to Durst’s jailhouse calls to pals, most of whom gave the impression to be unsettlingly on board with attempting to assist him evade punishment.
Nick Chavin, a Durst pal who wound up testifying towards him, broadly sums up that mentality by saying in seemingly cavalier vogue that he lacks a “ethical hatred of homicide and murderers.” Equally, unearthed audio finds Berman to have been extra complicit than the filmmakers imagined in attempting to assist Durst craft a believable story relating to what may need occurred to Kathie.
For all that, as New York Time reporter Charles Bagli notes, Durst possible would have remained free and averted prosecution “if he had simply stored his lure shut.” As an alternative, he selected to cooperate with Jarecki, for causes that mystify authorities and Durst confidants alike.
Jarecki does an admirable job of getting key gamers to take part, together with deputy district legal professional John Lewin, Choose Mark Windham, protection legal professional Dick DeGuerin, and a number of other jurors from the trial that resulted in Durst’s 2021 conviction for Berman’s homicide. He additionally incorporates amusing anecdotes, akin to Durst’s efforts to look particularly frail to elicit sympathy, maybe a bit too transparently.
Given the abundance of juicy materials, the one disgrace is that Jarecki felt obliged to decorate “The Jinx – Half Two” up with the tips of the commerce, together with actor reenactments, refined however conspicuous, of every thing from Durst trying down at Kathie’s physique to staged aerial pictures as he spoke with the authorities. Whereas these are by now frequent practices, when a lot is culled from actuality, blurring these strains feels pointless and even distracting.
Together with Netflix’s “Making a Murderer,” “The Jinx” helped usher in a wave of true crime that at its finest and most lurid has turn out to be each bit as invaluable to premium networks and attention-hungry streaming providers as status dramas.
Durst is likely to be an unlikely Hollywood main man – heck, he couldn’t even spell “Beverly Hills” correctly – however greater than two years after his demise he stays a supply of fascination, one which’s as disturbing as it’s, alas, arduous to withstand.
“The Jinx – Half Two” premieres April 21 at 10 p.m. ET on HBO, which, like CNN, is a unit of Warner Bros. Discovery.