Line #39 Main/TrueCrime


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5	[[quoteright:349:[[Series/ThePeopleVOJSimpson https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_people_v_oj_simpson.png]]]]
6
7	->'''Robert Graysmith''': Somebody should write a book.\
8	'''Paul Avery''': Somebody should write a fuckin' book, that's for sure. About what?\
9	'''Graysmith''': About Zodiac. I've been thinking, if you put all the information together, maybe you could jog something loose.
10	-->-- ''Film/Zodiac2007''
11
12	Some shows focus on real crimes rather than fictional ones. This isn't the same as RippedFromTheHeadlines, where the show creates a fictional counterpart to a real crime, complete with new fictional people to be part of it. True Crime shows aim to [[{{Dramatization}} dramatize]] an event (more-or-less) exactly, with names only changed if the victims or their families request it.
13
14	There are at least two distinct types of these shows:
15
16	* '''Calls for Aid''': The show is organized to see if the public can provide any clues or information the police don't already have to find a criminal who perpetrated an unsolved crime. For example ''Aktenzeichen XY ... ungelöst'', ''Series/CrimewatchUK'', and ''Series/AmericasMostWanted''.
17	* '''Retrospective''': Solved crimes or cold cases from many years ago are profiled. This overlaps with a documentary. For example ''Series/TheFirst48'', ''Series/ForensicFiles''.
18
19	Both types make use of CrimeReconstruction. Within both types, broadcast-network offerings tend to be made by the news division. They're what hourlong UsefulNotes/PrimeTime news shows often decay into; true investigative journalism costs serious money and carries the risks of speaking truth to power while TrueCrime retrospectives are just about the cheapest thing you can put out and still call "news programming".
20
21	The term is also used for NonFiction novels of varying quality, covering RealLife crimes. On one side you have novels written to cover the events as clearly and factually as possible, and then there are works thrown together for [[AirportNovel quick and easy public consumption]], often advertising things like "[[CoversAlwaysLie 10 pages of shocking photographs!]]" on the cover.
22
23	The MurderBallad could be considered a musical take on the genre, usually rooted in FolkMusic and embellished with generous amounts of ArtisticLicense.
24
25	A trope that covers a lot of true crime as represented in fiction is TrashyTrueCrime.
26
27	Should not be confused with [[VideoGame/TrueCrimeStreetsOfLA the entirely fictional video game.]]
28	----
29	!!Examples of "Calls for Aid":
30	* ''Aktenzeichen XY ... ungelöst'' (''File Number XY... unsolved'') is a German show aired on ZDF that mixes both flavours, but also [[TropeMaker practically started]] the whole TrueCrime genre to begin with. [[{{Pun}} Has been on the run]] since 1967 and has a current case resolution rating of around 40%. Through a mixture of photofits, mugshots, re-enactments, dramatizations, and the presentation of evidence, the anchorman tells the public to call the local police dealing with each case. Occasionally also presents cases from a few years back. Regularly awards members of the public and law enforcement with the ''XY-Award'' to honour exemplary cases of courage.
31	[[index]]
32	* ''Series/AmericanJustice''
33	* ''Series/AmericasMostWanted''
34	* ''Series/CrimewatchUK''
35	* ''MissingLive'' is more or less the same thing, but it calls for help looking for missing people rather than criminals.
36	* ''Series/UnsolvedMysteries''
37
38	!!Examples of "Retrospective":
39	* ''Film/TenRillingtonPlace''
40	* ''[[Series/FortyEightHoursMystery 48 Hours Mystery]]''
41	* ''Series/TheAct''
42	* ''Film/AbductedInPlainSight''
43	* ''Series/AmericanCrimeStory''
44	* ''Series/{{Blackbird}}''
45	* ''Series/BlueMurder''
46	* ''WebVideo/BuzzfeedUnsolved'' has a series dedicated to crimes both well known and obscure.
47	* ''Series/CityConfidential'' gives a travelogue introduction each week to a different U.S. city, its "in" crowd and its culture each week, and then documents a murder case that was particularly scandalizing to that city. The SoapOpera aspect is emphasized, and the narration is mildly humorous.
48	* ''Podcast/{{Cold}}''
49	* ''Series/ColdCaseFiles''
50	* ''Series/DahmerMonsterTheJeffreyDahmerStory''
51	* ''Series/DatelineNBC''
52	* ''Series/DeadlyWomen''
53	* ''Series/DelhiCrime''
54	* ''ComicBook/DidYouHearWhatEddieGeinDone''
55	* ''Podcast/{{Disgraceland}}'' centers around the messy criminal acts of famous musicians.
56	* ''Literature/TheExecutionersSong'' -- book about Gary Gilmore, who in 1977 became the first person to be executed in America after a 10-year death penalty moratorium.
57	* ''Series/ExhibitA''
58	* ''Podcast/FatFrenchAndFabulous''
59	* ''Series/TheFBIFiles''
60	* ''Series/TheFirst48''
61	* ''ForensicDetectives''
62	* ''Series/ForensicFiles''
63	* ''Series/TheGirlFromPlainville''
64	* ''Film/TheGoodNurse''
65	* ''Film/TheGrayMan2007''
66	* ''Literature/InColdBlood''
67	* Creator/InvestigationDiscovery a cable channel dedicated almost entirely to true crime programs, including several of the shows listed above as well as their own original series.
68	** Likewise, the [[http://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library Crime Library]].
69	* ''Series/JimmySavileABritishHorrorStory'' is a Creator/{{Netflix}} documentary about Creator/JimmySavile.
70	* ''Film/TheJinx''
71	* ''Series/TheKeepers'' is a MiniSeries about the unsolved murder of Baltimore nun Cathy Cesnik.
72	* ''VideoGame/LANoire'' uses real crimes from 1940s Los Angeles.
73	* ''Series/LawAndOrderTrueCrime''
74	* ''Podcast/TheLastPodcastOnTheLeft''
75	* ''Series/MakingAMurderer''
76	* ''{{Series/Manhunt}}''
77	** ''Series/ManhuntUnabomber''
78	** ''Series/ManhuntDeadlyGames''
79	* ''Film/TheMansonFamily''
80	* ''Series/McMillions''
81	* ''Series/MeaCulpa'', a Chilean [[GenreAnthology anthology]] series.
82	* ''{{Series/Mindhunter}}''
83	* ''Series/MurderAmongTheMormons''
84	* ''Literature/MurderInCowetaCounty''
85	* ''Podcast/MyFavoriteMurder''
86	* ''ComicBook/MyFriendDahmer''
87	* ''Series/TheNewDetectives''
88	* ''Podcast/RedHanded''
89	* ''Podcast/RedWeb''
90	* ''Podcast/{{Serial}}''
91	* ''Podcast/SickSadWorld'', which also covers some supernatural horror as well
92	* ''Series/{{Snapped}}'' is largely about wives who kill their husbands, though there have been cases shown where women kill their boyfriends' wives/[=SOs=], daughters kill their parents and husbands kill their wives. In most cases, the accused play it up as a crime of passion (or that they were framed or set up by the cops who couldn't find a better suspect) even if the evidence clearly points to premeditation.
93	* ''Film/{{Starkweather}}''
94	* ''Podcast/STown''
95	* ''Literature/TheStrangerBesideMe''
96	* ''Podcast/{{Swindled}}'' is devoted to white-collar crimes and corruption.
97	* ''Series/TheThingAboutPam''
98	* ''Series/TigerKing'' explores an especially sordid saga from the bizarre world of exotic animal collecting.
99	* ''Film/{{Wonderland}}'' is based on the Wonderland murders that occurred in 1981.
100	* ''Series/TopCops'' presented dramatizations of true life police incidents told by the cops involved.
101	* ''{{Series/Unbelievable}}''
102	* ''Series/{{Unsolved}}: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G.'' follows the two failed investigations into the murder of rapper Biggie Smalls and its possible connections to the earlier murder of Tupac.
103	* ''Podcast/{{Unresolved}}''
104	* ''Series/WildWildCountry''
105	[[/index]]
106
107	!!Parodies:
108	* ''Series/AmericanVandal'' is a mockumentary of true crime docs.
109	* ''Podcast/DoneDisappeared'' parodies disappearance true crime podcasts.
110	* ''Podcast/AVeryFatalMurder'' parodies murder mystery podcasts.
111	* "[[WebVideo/EveryBlankEver EVERY PODCAST EVER]]" includes parodies of true crime podcasts.
112	* ''Podcast/PodcastTheRide'' parodies true crime podcasts in the "Fabio Goose Incident" episode. The hosts use the typical "somber marimba music" and self-important tone of the genre while trying to determine what ''really'' happened at Ride/BuschGardens when Fabio was bloodied while debuting the roller coaster "Apollo's Chariot".
113	* ''Series/{{Portlandia}}'' has an [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsufMtUOXtI episode]] where the police lieutenant invites podcasters to cover the case.
114	* ''The Break with Michelle Wolf'' has a segment titled "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJ0W92w5WCU The Husband Did It]]" parodying ''The Staircase''.
115	* ''Series/TrialAndError'' a mockumentary based on ''The Staircase'' and ''The Jinx''.

Context Main / TrueCrime