Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Shulgasser-Parker
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
True crime docu examines complicated murder case; violence.
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Why Age 14+?
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A Deadly American Marriage
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
The only thing that is certain in A DEADLY AMERICAN MARRIAGE is that Jason Corbett died in 2015 in his North Carolina home after being hit with a baseball bat and a cinder block by his wife and father-in-law. Was he trying to strangle his wife, Molly, in the moments before, leaving his father-in-law to save Molly from the attack? Was Jason a controlling, abusive, violent spouse, or was he a great guy saddled with a lying, unstable wife? Those intriguing questions are laid out in this twisty-turny documentary. American Molly took a job as the au pair to widower Jason and his two small kids in Ireland. They fell in love and decided to move to North Carolina. Molly says she raised the children as her own, but Jason, she says, put off allowing her to adopt them. The marriage was troubled, it seems, based on recordings and texts, and Jason didn't want Molly taking his kids away in the event of a breakup. Slowly, new information is revealed, and some wonder if Jason killed his first wife, who died under "mysterious" circumstances. Was he readying to kill Molly, too? Others wonder if the kids were coached to tell the police their dad had a bad temper and had hit Molly. Years later, when the kids recant and claim Molly told them what to say, they describe their dad as a saint. What really happened?
Is It Any Good?
A Deadly American Marriage makes sense of a lot of difficult and complex material. The mix of a number of people who seem both sympathetic and treacherous and a horrific situation that involves young, innocent children creates a whirling, forward-moving narrative about memory, justice, and whether young children can interpret events they participated in or observed. Although their dad was bludgeoned to death, it's the children, now in their late teens, who are the true victims. Their anguish over the loss of their dad, as well as the guilt they feel over the role they unwittingly played in harming his reputation, is palpable. What the film does so well is leave us feeling that even as the kids come to grips with their loss, we still don't know who was telling the truth and who was lying.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the way people took sides, some certain that Jason was a violent and controlling abuser who threatened Molly's life, and others equally certain that Molly was a lying, manipulative schemer who was plotting to steal his kids. Which side do you believe? Why?
How does the movie portray the way the justice system tries to understand a case? Do you think the police and prosecutor understood everything about the case? Why, or why not?
How does the changing testimony of the kids alter your view of the case as the film goes on? How reliable do you think the testimony of young children is? How about the testimony of children who grow up under the influence of people who have their own biases about the case?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : May 9, 2025
- Directors : Jenny Popplewell , Jessica Burgess
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Director(s)
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Documentary
- Run time : 102 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : May 17, 2025
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