But it creates a film in which Bourdin’s voice — compelling, charming, self-aware — occupies significant real estate, and in which the family members have to argue for their own account against someone who is clearly more experienced at persuasion.

Whether this balance is fair to the family is a question worth raising, even as the film remains one of the most interesting documentary treatments of any true crime case.

The Questions That Will Not Be Answered

The persistence of the Nicholas Barclay case as a topic of discussion, investigation, and creative treatment reflects the power of unanswered questions to hold attention across time.

The specific questions that cannot be answered in this case are: