
In 1989, five black and Latino teenagers from Harlem were arrested and later convicted of raping a white woman in New York City's Central Park. They spent between 6 and 13 years in prison before a serial rapist confessed that he alone had committed the crime, leading to their convictions being overturned. Set against a backdrop of a decaying city beset by violence and racial tension, this is the story of that horrific crime, the rush to judgment by the police, a media clamoring for sensational stories and an outraged public, and the five lives upended by this miscarriage of justice.
Directed by Sarah Burns, Ken Burns, David McMahon, The Central Park Five leans on a strong ensemble — Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.
The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about documentary titles of 2012.
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A chronicle of the rise and fall of O.J. Simpson, whose high-profile murder trial exposed the extent of American racial tensions, revealing a fractured and divided nation.
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