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Parents' Guide to

The Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson

By Jeffrey M. Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Violent true-crime thriller is a badly filmed bad idea.

Movie R 2020 85 minutes
The Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 17+

Based on 2 parent reviews

Luvly75
Luvly75 Adult
August 26, 2022
age 16+

Must not see.. Fiction

Horrible movie.. OJ must of made all this up while he was locked up.. 🤣🤣
Npaige
Npaige Adult
November 8, 2021
age 18+

Another vile attempt to pretend that O.J. didn't do it....sigh

Frankly this show is despicable. There is simply no possible way that this Glen was involved at all in the deaths of Nicole & Goldman. Nicole's dogs did not attack the murderer because they knew him, it was O.J. their co-owner. Furthermore, the violent acts of murder were indicative of someone being passionate about Nicole and having a close relationship to her. This is Homicide 101. To pretend that somehow nobody saw this other guy, & the cops didn't find any of his DNA, yet both Nicole's and Ron's DNA was all over O.J.'s Bronco inside of it & in his house, doesn't add up. For people attempting to delude the public on the deaths of these two murder victims, I say there is no Karma bad enough for them to receive. This is a sick despicable display & shows immoral mental psychosis of those involved to continue to beat this dead horse. I'm sure these are the same scum bags smearing a President for 30 straight yrs over a sex act, while cheering on a rapist, pedo, mobster & immoral degenerate like to become President by any means necessary. Is this also the same sick group continuing to try to mesmerize the public with their bag of lies that Oswald killed JFK with help from others or by himself? Everyone else with common sense knows that if Oswald did it at all, we wouldn't still be debating the topic & researching it. Someone called this tabloid trash....& it is. It's equivalent to mind-pollution. If I were a member of either Nicole or Ron's family, I would sue the scum that are making money off of their personal tragedy.
See all 2 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In THE MURDER OF NICOLE BROWN SIMPSON, newly divorced mom Nicole (Mena Suvari) is raising her two children by former husband O.J. Simpson. Anxious and afraid due to her ex's frequent attempts to intimidate her, Nicole tries desperately to get her life in order, including going to therapy and hiring handyman Glen (Nick Stahl) to get her condo into shape. Unfortunately, after sleeping with Glen, Nicole learns that he's not the most stable person in the world, and he threatens to kill her. The cops don't believe her, and her attempts to find out more about him come to nothing. Then, one fateful night in 1994, Nicole and her friend Ron (Drew Roy) meet a violent end. Did O.J. do it, or was it Glen?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (2 ):
Kids say: Not yet rated

If it weren't so flat-out cruel to the real-life people involved in its tragic story, this true-crime "thriller" might have entertained cult audiences willing to laugh at its jaw-dropping awfulness. After the great documentary O.J.: Made in America effectively placed this tabloid story into a broader historical perspective -- arguing that race and celebrity are at the center of just about everything -- trashy exploitation like The Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson seems even more thoughtless. It essentially wants to argue that a serial killer ("The Casanova Killer") committed the murders that O.J. was charged with. But to do this, it cruelly asks us to watch and identify with Nicole in the months leading up to her inevitable death.

Then there's the matter of the incredibly poor filmmaking and awkward, overwritten dialogue that seems intent on explaining things more than once (or, more likely, killing time and stretching this non-story out to 85 minutes). Wobbly camerawork, lame attempts at suspense -- shadows darting past the frame, the killer magically appearing and disappearing -- and a truly bizarre nightmare sequence are interspersed with dramatic moments in which Nicole hangs out with Kris Kardashian (Agnes Bruckner) and predicts her own death. At least Taryn Manning provides a campy, unhinged performance as interior designer Faye Resnick. But otherwise, The Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson is no fun.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about The Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson's violence. How did it affect you? Does the fact that it's based on real life make it seem more gory or upsetting than other movie violence?

  • How is sex depicted? Is there trust or communication involved? What values are imparted?

  • How is drinking and/or substance abuse depicted? Is it glamorized? Are there consequences? Why does that matter?

  • Does the movie make a reasonable case for the "Casanova Killer" being the actual murderer? Why or why not?

  • How does it feel watching a fairly sympathetic character like Nicole while knowing that she'll die at the end?

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