Parents' Guide to My Grandfather Charles Manson

This documentary pieces together a wide assortment of disparate elements, the editing of which could have been even tighter, but the subject and revelations make it a gripping watch. My Grandfather Charles Manson stands apart from much of the true crime content available to stream because it's presented as one woman's psychological journey rather than a historical investigation or analysis. Maddox is trying to come to terms with her own ancestry. She says she wants to understand Manson without becoming an apologist.

She does do her research, interviewing people associated with Manson and his "family" ranch and crime sprees. The interview revealing the institutional abuse and parental abandonment Manson experienced as a child (echoed in her own father's revelations about his childhood) does add perspective. Maddox also shares videos from private moments with her now-estranged father and close-up crying sessions of her processing information. That willingness to (over?) share, surely a trait of her generation, is brave but can feel more TikTok than documentary. Still, it's part of a unique package that works as a whole.