American Murder: The Family Next Door Review

The chilling disappearance and murder of a mother and her two daughters.

American Murder: The Family Next Door Review

Isabella McAllister, Newspaper Editor-In-Chief

A Netflix documentary was released on September 30 called American Murder: The Family Next Door. The movie sparked emotion across the nation. This murder case took place in 2018 but was just recently brought back up through the documentary. A mother and her two daughters disappeared and were later found to be murdered, leaving a mystery all over the town. 

I had heard a podcast recently over this same case. It included a little more detail, but the documentary gave you the opportunity to be able to see what these people looked like. The use of actual videos pulled from Facebook and at home, videos made the movie more emotionally impactful. It makes you feel personally connected to the family. Hearing those little girls’ voices and their mom singing with them broke my heart. 

Shannan Watts was coming home from a business trip one night, and the next day she and her children were missing, but one person was left…her husband. Shannan’s phone was left at the house, as well as the children’s blankets and the rest of their belongings. Immediately I felt that something was off with him coming home at the time he did, as well as his reaction to the whole thing. He simply seemed heartless. Even the neighbors said that he was acting weird. 

I mean the man failed his polygraph test, and it was very clear he did not even know what to say. They made his dad come in and there he admitted to his father about what he had done. He gave the gory details of how and what he had done to the bodies of his family. It took him going to trial and being in front of the judge for him to admit what he had done to everyone. He was there declared guilty, and given life in prison. The judge had said that this was the worst and most graphic case he had seen in his court. 

It was predicted that he did what he did in order to move on with his wife, considering that he was cheating on his wife. Knowing he would call a babysitter when his wife would go out of town so he could go out with his girlfriend pulled at my anger. When you are supposed to be taking care of someone and leaving them to benefit yourself more, man that gets me. Shannan knew something was off due to the car charges and the door alarms, but still, he went on. Christopher just wasn’t expecting to be caught. 

The way that he killed his wife and the children, and what he did with their bodies is absolutely unimaginable. It makes me sick to my stomach thinking about him killing those little girls and dropping them into an oil barrel. How cruel do you have to be to do such a thing? To kill your own kids? I just do not understand how this man could lie and live with himself.

This documentary has been one of the best ones I have seen in a long time. I normally am not into documentaries of any kind. But, when I started watching this one, I could not stop. I was glued to the screen and not many true story documentaries can do that to me. I recommend this story to most people. Yes it is a tragic story and it is hard to hear, but I think this message and story is one that needs to be heard. This story isn’t just about a murder story, but a failing marriage, people changing, and a deep view into believing we are safe with the people we love.