In the three-part Peacock docuseries (November 29) Casey Anthony: where the truth lies, the notorious young woman repeatedly and forcefully argues that she had nothing to do with the apparent murder of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee. This is Anthony’s first TV interview since she was acquitted in 2011. Yet to buy everything director Alexandra Haggiag Dean’s non-fiction business is selling, namely, absolving Anthony of responsibility for the Caylee’s death and singling out her father George as an incestuous, pedophile rapist – necessitates believing Anthony herself. And given his long and highly publicized history of lying, that’s probably going to be a bridge too far for most.

Anthony definitely gives it his all Where is the truth, crying endlessly and wholeheartedly as she proclaims her innocence, her ignorance of what happened to Caylee, and her suspicions, and eventual charges against, her father’s involvement. George (and his brother, Lee) sexually abused her when she was little, according to Anthony. In his view, the most logical explanation for Caylee’s disappearance is that George molested and accidentally killed Caylee, dunked her in the family’s backyard swimming pool to cover up her crime, and then got rid of her. her in the nearby wooded spot where she was found wrapped in duct tape and stowed in a trash bag along with her Winnie the Pooh blanket. Nothing presented here definitively incriminates George; there are only Anthony’s statements. Then again, there is also little hard evidence implicating Anthony, which is why she was not convicted of first degree murder; instead, she was convicted of four misdemeanors for providing false information to law enforcement.

Anthony’s case was, as Where is the truth reminds viewers, the first major trial covered by social media, with public opinion shaped and expressed on online platforms as well as through traditional media. It was a spectacle that rivaled that of the OJ Simpson case, and its exonerating result generated similar fury from millions of Americans, who were convinced Anthony had killed his daughter and then covered it up. . This view was largely based on a variety of disturbing details, beginning with Anthony’s decision not to report Caylee missing in July 2008 for 31 days. Worse still, during this period, Anthony was photographed partying with friends, and she also got a “Bella Vita” (meaning “Beautiful Life”) tattoo. When his mother, Cindy, finally told authorities that Caylee was missing, Anthony lied about dropping the child off at a non-existent nanny, his place of work (Universal Studios), and getting a fake phone call from Caylee.

The portrait that emerged was of a young woman in her twenties who had left her daughter so she could live a fast and free single life, and it was this notion that Where is the truth tries to counter. Although director Dean makes it clear upfront that Anthony has no editorial control over this project, it’s obviously designed to portray her as a sympathetic, grieving person who has been and continues to be wronged at every turn. Through relentless waterworks (and enhanced by harrowing animated sequences and equally heartbreaking music), Anthony poses as a victim of rape at the hands of his loved ones; of an overbearing father who “brainwashed” her into lying, then testified against her in front of a grand jury and in court; of an authoritarian and cruel mother; of the police and prosecutors who sought to frame her for something she did not do; and a society that has unjustly vilified her as a filicidal monster.

Peacock

Casey Anthony: where the truth lies supplements the tearful commentary with remarks from some friends and members of Anthony’s legal team, who are now his surrogate family. Yet while Anthony and others tackle all the puzzling aspects of this story – from Anthony concocting a bogus nanny, to not telling the authorities about his daughter, to her infamous tattoo – they do so to no avail. Anthony’s sleazy conduct is tied to long-repressed sexual assault trauma and the compartmentalization that was his supposed response to Caylee’s disappearance. As Anthony explains, she saw George holding a drenched and motionless Caylee on the day of her apparent death. But because he said everything would be fine, Anthony believed that Caylee had just been kidnapped by George, and later kept quiet about the whole thing because she grew up in a house founded on the ugly secret. .

Or, you know, something like that. The theories proposed by Where is the truth don’t stand up to much scrutiny and do little to clear up the many inconsistencies in Anthony’s account, let alone explain why a mother wouldn’t tell a soul, for a month, that her child is well -loved was MIA. Denial is a familiar and natural response to intense grief and suffering, but it seems a far less authentic reaction to the abduction and possible rape/murder of a two-year-old child. As a result, Detectives John Allen and Eric Edwards, who investigated Anthony, remain unmoved by her defence, holding that Anthony’s deceptions and odd behavior make her the only legitimate suspect.

Dean mainly highlights the speakers who have Anthony’s back, as well as Anthony herself. But Anthony’s histrionics in front of the camera seems performative, especially once she’s screamed for the umpteenth time while looking at old photographs, visiting her childhood home, or viewing archival footage. While some points are up for debate, including George’s outlandish decisions and statements, it’s nearly impossible to take Anthony seriously in light of his past fabrications and ongoing escapes. She’s a totally unreliable narrator of a narrative she’s been crafting for over a decade, and Casey Anthony: where the truth lies merely proves an articulation of this version of events, festooned with #MeToo-era buzzwords and full of innuendo as flimsy as its subject’s tears are abundant.

Ultimately, this brings Peacock’s docuseries closer to OJ’s If I did—a transparent rehabilitation project that will convince few and exasperate more than one.