Brother's Keeper

In the small town of Munnsville in upstate New York, four elderly brothers, the Wards, live together on a farm. They can barely read or write, their electricity and water are minimal, and their contact with the town is limited. One morning one of them, William, is found dead. Delbert, who slept beside him, is charged with murder and signs a confession during police questioning. The town stands behind him and the case becomes national news. The documentary by Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky does not try to solve the case; its real interest is how the legal system meets people who are strangers to its language. How the signed confession was obtained is its most disturbing passage. The narrative does not turn the brothers into a spectacle, but the camera sits very close to their daily life, and that is the ethically argued-over aspect of the film. Who it's for: Viewers of true-crime documentary, criticism of the legal system, and narratives of rural America. Who it's not for: The way the living conditions are shown will unsettle some viewers. The pace is also slow.