Review of Accused

"Lucia De B(Accused)" is a sometimes gripping, sometimes run of the mill story that stands out more positively due to Ariane Schluter and Sallie Harmsen's performances. It's also based on a true story, so the film is engaging. Despite the unnecessary flashbacks, this is a strong, heartbreaking film that tells of the hell faced by an innocent real-life woman in Netherlands - a female version of Camus' Meursault for that matter -, condemned by public opinion mostly for her independent and reserved nature. The true story of a miscarriage of justice in the Netherlands made into a fictional thriller, the film has the recipe for a captivating watch: the titular character's agony of injustice and her spirit of perseverance; the court-room tension of observing a trial in progress; a character on a guilt trip and a mission to undo the wrongs; all strapped in with fictionalized accounts of what'd happened in reality. The film takes its liberties with history and smothers in, blatantly, sappy flashbacks to capture the audience's sympathy, but all the while creating a thrilling tale of redemption and the deliverance of true justice to the individual.