Lizzie Borden Took an Ax (2014)

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. I thought Christina Ricci was outstanding - she portrayed Lizzie Borden in a way that made me wonder if she was guilty. The film was frightening because of Ricci's dark portrayal and, personally, I loved it. If you are interested in true crime books or films then this is a must watch!

I was able to see this on Netflix streaming movies. Although I had heard of, like most people, the Borden murders I really knew little about them. This is a good presentation of what we know from history, and what many speculate. It pretty well follows the historical and police accounts.I have always been a fan of Christina Ricci and she is superb as Lizzie Borden. She plays her age, early 30s, still living at home with her dad and his wife, her stepmom. Her mother died when she was very young, about 2, and had no recollection of her. Mr Borden was a successful businessman and by today's standards, adjusted for inflation, would have a wealth of several million dollars. But he was frugal and ruled his house. Lizzie was headstrong and didn't easily take instructions counter to what she wanted to do.As history records the Mrs was murdered first, then maybe 1 1/2 hours later the Mr. The prosecutor's theory was Lizzie murdered them, and did her dad second, so that the inheritances would work out, assets of the Mrs passed to her husband, then his assets passed to Lizzie and her sister.But it was never proved, there was no evidence or eye-witness, and Lizzie was found 'not guilty' at a highly publicized trial. But the movie depicts her as guilty, showing how she removed her clothes to avoid blood spatter on her, then got dressed at the end, to scream and attract attention to her dad's murder. It also depicts an unheard whispering into her sister's ear as Lizzie tells her exactly what happened, and her sister goes away horrified. Her sister is played by Clea DuVall, also age appropriate in her 40s, as Emma Borden.Of course we cannot know for sure if Lizzie did it, but this movie adopts the POV that she did and got away with it.Good movie, I enjoyed it.

I think the movie was mostly a rehash, nothing really new and what was new is news to me--seems fictional. The acting was OK, I suppose. The music was the thing that really impressed me: it gave the movie this dazed, Thorazine-grunge effect. It WAS inappropriately placed in a sense, but to me that added to the surrealness of the movie. I mean, it needed something....I think the box that warns me about being blacklisted for putting a spoiler out there is humorous. Would I really be blacklisted for telling what happened in this movie? Titanic? Hindenburg?There, that's my 10 lines. Whew.

This film tells the story of a young woman who was trialled for the murder of her parents in a small town back in 1800's."Lizzie Borden Took An Ax" details the police investigation and the trial proceedings of the murder. It is very engaging to watch, as the viewers do not know whether Lizzie killed her parents or not. There are circumstantial evidence pointing that she did, but also evidence leaning towards she did not. It is a captivating case, and "Lizzie Borden TOok An Ax" presented the mystery beautifully. I really like Christina Ricci in her role, she is very convincing both in her appearance and her demeanor as a young woman. She is depicted to have a motive to kill her parents, but viewers are left to ponder whether she really did it. I enjoyed watching the film, as it successfully creates much suspense and mystery.