Metallica, murder, and the miscarriage of justice that made HBO rewrite true crime TV.
Meet the West Memphis Three.
Three teenagers. One brutal murder. Zero evidence.
Warning: The opening scene of Part 1 shows the crime scene and is one of the most graphically disturbing intros in documentary history.
Trailer for Part 1: Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills
Trailer for Part 2: Paradise Lost 2: Revelations
Trailer for Part 3: Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Watch “Paradise Lost: The Trilogy”
You can watch all three “Paradise Lost” documentaries on Max (HBO)
Or find current streaming options via JustWatch.
But I also found these free ways to watch them:
Watch Paradise Lost 1: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills for Free
Watch Paradise Lost 2: Revelations for Free
Watch Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory for Free
Ratings:
- My Rating: 95/100 (for all films) (I believe you should watch all 3 parts together so I give this just one rating (as if it were 3 episodes or chapters of one story). But if you want more granular ratings from someone else, here’s somethin’ from the big boys:
- IMDB Rating: 8.2/10 (Part 1); 7.5 (Part 2); 8.0 (Part 3)
- Rotten Tomatoes: Part 1 = 94/100 (Users); 100/100 (Critics)…Part 2 = 84/100 (Users); 92/100 (Critics)…Part 3 = 93/100 (Users); 100/100 (Critics)
Director’s Note: Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky directed the trilogy over 18 years. They also made “Brother’s Keeper” (a favorite of mine — I ranked it 98/100) and “Metallica: Some Kind of Monster” (91/100)).
Berlinger later directed Netflix’s “Conversations with a Killer” series and the docudrama “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.”
Release Dates: Part I (1996), Part II (2000), Part III (2011)
My Review of “Paradise Lost: The Trilogy”
The Setup
Paradise Lost is a trilogy of 3 documentaries.
- Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills (1996)
- Paradise Lost 2: Revelations (2000)
- Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (2011)
The story tracks the 18-year legal hell of the West Memphis Three—Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley Jr.—wrongly convicted as teenagers for the 1993 murders of three young boys in Arkansas.
Their crime?
Wearing black, liking heavy metal, and being different during peak Satanic Panic.
You Can’t Make This Sh*t Up
- A bloody man is found sitting on the toilet in a Bojangles restaurant bathroom the night of the murders. Police never question him—and later lose the blood samples.
- Misskelley is interrogated for 12 hours without a lawyer or parent present. Only 46 minutes are taped. His confession doesn’t match the crime timeline—but it’s used anyway.
- John Mark Byers mails the filmmakers a knife with blood on it. The blood is consistent with both him and his murdered stepson.
More Highlights from the Doc Series (by film)
Part 1 – The Witch Hunt Begins
- The prosecution’s case hinges on Misskelley’s taped confession, despite contradictions and the fact he barely knew the other two accused.
- The community and court buy into the “Satanic cult” narrative—citing black clothes, heavy metal, and Echols’ reading list.
- Damien is sentenced to death. Baldwin and Misskelley get life.
Part 2 – Suspicion Turns on Byers
- Byers burns mock graves for the West Memphis Three on camera, gives inconsistent statements, and volunteers for a polygraph—which he passes, but results are questioned due to his meds.
- A new forensic expert finds a bite mark on one of the victims. None of the WM3 match. Byers is asked for dental records—but he’s had all his teeth pulled.
- Byers is accused of stealing from neighbors. His wife dies under mysterious circumstances between Part 1 and 2.
Part 3 – The Case Unravels
- DNA testing excludes all three teens. One hair from the crime scene matches Terry Hobbs.
- Hobbs had a known history of domestic abuse. He also sues the Dixie Chicks for defamation, opening himself up to sworn questioning.
- Jury misconduct is revealed—the foreman introduced Misskelley’s confession during deliberations even though it was ruled inadmissible.
- All appeals are denied by the same judge who handled the original trials.
- Faced with new evidence and mounting pressure, the state offers a deal: plead guilty and go free. They accept.
Cameos
- Johnny Depp, Eddie Vedder, Henry Rollins, and Natalie Maines all speak out publicly for the WM3.
- Architect Lorri Davis writes Damien Echols in prison after seeing the first film. They later marry. She becomes a central advocate in the movement.
- Metallica — See below!
Metallica Provides the Soundtrack
Metallica provided the soundtrack (for free) for the three documentaries in the “Paradise Lost” series.
This marked the first time Metallica allowed their music to be used in a film.
Metallica’s decision was influenced by the fact that the accused teenagers in the case were fans of the band.
Metallica provided these 12 songs (sorted by film):
Paradise Lost 1:
- Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
- The Call of Ktulu
- Orion
Paradise Lost 2
- Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
- The Call of Ktulu
- Fade to Black
- The Unforgiven
- The Unforgiven II
- My Friend of Misery
- Nothing Else Matters
- Fixxer
- Poor Twisted Me
- The Outlaw Torn
Paradise Lost 3:
- Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
- Fade to Black
- The Day That Never Comes
The closing music to the film is The Day That Never Comes (it starts at the 2 min. 18 seconds mark in this video:)
Lesser-Known Details from the Doc
- Terry Hobbs, another stepdad, isn’t even interviewed by police. Years later, his DNA is found on a ligature binding one of the victims.
- All three are released only after agreeing to Alford pleas—pleading guilty while saying they’re innocent—so the state doesn’t have to admit they were wrong.
- The filmmakers initially believed the boys were guilty. They changed their minds mid-filming as the case fell apart.
- The films themselves helped shift public opinion and bring attention to missed evidence, flawed forensics, and judicial bias.
- Joe Berlinger: “We thought we were making a film about guilty kids… Eighteen years later, the State of Arkansas finally caught up.”
- Berlinger and Sinofsky met Metallica during “Paradise Lost” which led to Metallica later choosing the directors for the “Metallica: Some Kind of Monster” documentary.
Wrap Up
“Paradise Lost” is an awesome courtroom doc series about injustice. It didn’t just report the injustice—it helped undo it.
Thanks for reading!
Rob Kelly, Chief Maniac, Daily Doc