[I review the documentaries "Amy Bradley is Missing," "Death in Apt. 603: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg," and "The Perfect Neighbor"]
Amy Bradley is Missing (2025)
A three-part docuseries about a 23-year-old woman who went missing during a Caribbean cruise enroute to Curacao in 1998.
This intriguing documentary explores the case of Amy Bradley, who on March 24, 1998, was last seen by her father sleeping on the deck chair of her room's balcony on the Royal Caribbean "Rhapsody of the Seas" cruise ship at 5:30am. By 6am, she was missing.
A thorough search of the ship was done and when authorities were alerted, the Netherlands Antilles Coast Guard, thinking she may have fallen overboard or jumped, conducted a four-day search in the surrounding waters. Nothing was found.
At the time of her disappearance, Amy was 23 and a graduate of Longwood University. She was known for her strong swimming abilities as well as having previously worked as a lifeguard. She came out as gay to her family while in college, and though her parents were not happy about that, they acknowledged it was her life and they loved her unconditionally.
Amy's dad, Ron, had won an all-expenses-paid family cruise from his employer; and Bradley joined her family on that fateful trip on the Royal Caribbean International cruise ship Rhapsody of the Seas en route for Curaçao. They were joined by Amy's brother, Brad. Amy had a full-time job as a waitress, but was planning to start a new job at a computer consulting firm after her return from the cruise.
Using interviews with fellow ship's passengers, Amy's family members, FBI and others as well as re-enactments and film footage, this three-part docuseries directed by Phil Lott and Ari Mark details the efforts to find Amy, descriptions of the many sightings that have been reported over the years and speculation about what could have happened to her.
- Did Amy commit suicide by jumping off her balcony?
- Was Amy pushed off the balcony?
- Did Amy fall from the balcony by accident?
- Did Amy leave the ship of her own accord?
- Was Amy abducted by sex traffickers
A case is built for each theory. See what you think.
As an aside, the series also notes some dangers associated with cruising. Out on International waters, you are on your own.
In the many years since her disappearance, several people have claimed to have seen Amy in Curacao, Barbados and other locations but authorities have been unable to corroborate the sightings though this has fueled speculation that Amy was a victim of human trafficking. Amy's whereabouts are still unknown, though tips and sightings continue to come in. Will the mystery of her disappearance ever been solved?
As they say, it's not the destination, it's the journey. This journey is a fascinating mystery.
Rosy the Reviewer says...this stranger than fiction real life story is highly addictive but also highly disturbing. I won't be taking a cruise anytime soon. (Netflix)
Death in Apartment. 603: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg? (2025)
School teacher, Ellen Greenberg, was found dead in her apartment with over 20 stab wounds and her death was initially ruled a suicide and the case was closed! What!?
Produced and directed by Nancy Schwartzman, this 3-part mini-series explores the death of Ellen Greenberg whose gruesome death was ruled a suicide. Later it was ruled a homicide and then changed back to a suicide. No one could believe that was possible and her parents fought to keep the case open.
On January 26, 2011, Ellen Greenberg's fiancee, Sam Goldberg, left the apartment he shared with Ellen and went down to the gym in their Philadelphia apartment building. When he returned, he found the apartment door latched from the inside. He asked the apartment concierge for help and called Ellen repeatedly. He eventually broke down the door and found Ellen's body with 20 stab wounds and a knife sticking out of her heart. He called 911 and when the police came, Ellen's death was ruled a suicide because the door had been latched from the inside, the apartment was not disturbed and she had no defensive wounds. Because it is not a crime to kill yourself in Pennsylvania, the case was closed, the apartment was cleaned and Sam's attorney uncle removed Ellen's phone and computer. And that was that.
But wait a minute. Later, the coroner ruled it a homicide but basically it was too late for much of an investigation since the scene had been cleaned and electronics removed. What did the police have to go on? But c'mon. Something to go on would be 20 stab wounds, some of those stab wounds in the back of her neck! And what about those bruises? And was Sam's testimony to be believed? But, later, after what appeared to be pressure from the police, the coroner changed his ruling back to suicide.
To everyone who knew her, Ellen was a charming, happy person. Yes, she was depressed about her teaching job and it was observed that she often didn't wear he engagement ring. But there were no indications that she wanted to kill herself. After her death, Sam went on with this life but Ellen's parents, Josh and Sandee Greenberg, weren't having it and began a crusade to find out the truth, and six years after Ellen's death, Stephanie Farr, a reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer, wrote Ellen's story. She put Ellen's story all together and no one had really seen the full story until then. It became a cause celebre and this mini-series is a result of that. In fact, Elle and Dakota Fanning are two of the producers. Taking a case to the media is often the only way to get some movement.
Through archival materials, crime scene photos interviews with friends, relatives and Ellen's parents as well as with the coroner, police officers, a private investigator hired by Ellen's parents, the district attorney, Farr and others, Ellen's story is told and the errors in the investigation of her death and the bureaucratic failures are revealed.
This story is important and amplifies something that could touch any of us - the sometimes difficult task to get justice.
Rosy the Reviewer says...suicide or homicide? You decide. But, c'mon, 20 stab wounds? (Hulu)
The Perfect Neighbor (2025)On June 2, 2023 in Ocala, Florida Susan Lorincz shot and killed her neighbor, Ajike "AJ" Shantrell Owens through the door as Owens, angry that Lorincz had been antagonizing her son, knocked on her door. So much for a perfect neighbor.
The title of this documentary is, of course, ironic. Lorincz was a white woman living in a predominantly black neighborhood and was the neighbor from hell calling the police multiple times on the kids in the neighborhood, accusing them of noise, stealing, messing with her truck and on and on. And Lorincz could not understand why this was happening to her because she thought of herself as "the perfect neighbor."
Using mostly bodycam footage from the many times sheriff's deputies responded to her 911 calls, security tapes and recordings of her calls as well as her questioning after the shooting, this film directed by Geeta Gandbhir is like an elevated version of "Cops" with "The Blair Witch Project" thrown in. There are no talking heads and no narration which gives the film a "you are there" feel and the film is very real and disturbing. This is reality TV.
This was an important case because it brought the controversial "Stand your ground" laws to light.
Florida has a "Stand your ground" law meaning, if people feel threatened, it's okay to defend themselves. And that's what Lorincz did. She said she was in fear for her life and that she was afraid that Owens would break through the door and kill her. However, the film is an indictment of "Stand your ground" laws and states that those laws play a part in over 700 deaths a year with a higher rate of black people being killed by whites.
On one side, gun critics argue that “stand your ground” is less a law than a "license to kill. They call it a “shoot-first, think-later” doctrine that magnifies America’s ugliest reflexes around race, fear, and power. They say, in the wrong hands, it turns prejudice into justification, allowing fear itself to be used as a weapon.
Second Amendment enthusiasts say the law is clear. The right to bear arms is sacred and defending your life is a right.
So what happened to Susan Lorincz?
That's the mystery you will have to solve by watching this film, but for me the greater mystery is how Susan Lorincz ended up being such a miserable and hateful person, not to mention a monster of a neighbor and how many more like her are out there?
Rosy the Reviewer says...a disturbing experience that makes me wonder about my neighbors. (Netflix)
See You Next Time!
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