Depp V Heard is the latest Netflix documentary series released on August 16, 2023, that re-examines the defamation case between famous Hollywood stars. It is produced for Channel 4 Television by Empress Films and Bitachon 365. Directed by Emma Cooper, the series is produced by Eloise Vanstone and Carla Grande.
There are three episodes in the documentary series with a runtime of about 45-50 minutes. It majorly uses the archival footage from the live streaming of the court hearing and viral social media posts, to create a linear timeline of everything that went down in and out of the court.
Depp V Heard Review
If you weren’t on a Nature retreat or a complete digital detox around the same time last year, then you must have come across the scintillating headlines and social media posts, analysing every aspect of the defamation case filed by Johnny Depp against Amber Heard. Depp claimed that the domestic abuse claims put on him are completely false and had tarnished his image and thus, claiming $50 million in damages. Whereas, Heard filed counterclaims against Depp claiming $100 million in damages in Fairfax County, Virginia.
The first question that raised from the news that why are they suing in Virginia court, despite not having any ties to the state. It’s because of the state’s strong Defamation Laws that Depp sought to get help. Starting from April 2022, the series takes off from the live streaming of the first trial and the striking thing going on side by side is the flocking of social media influencers to comment and react on the same.
One can see how much the public and the media were engrossed in the tidbits of what really happened in Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s relationship. Who was at fault? Who was the one lying? Can the Internet army find evidence for everything presented in the court? And such many questions rounded off the internet, dissecting every facial expression, dressing style and whatnot to support the side they believed in.
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It’s fair to say that Depp’s immense popularity worldwide did help him create a literal army of fans that would cheer him on the way to the court and then seek out justice petitions for him online. The majority of times, Heard’s each word or actions became fodder for memes and to brand her as a liar. While the series doesn’t reveal anything else that one doesn’t know, nor does it conclude anything. It just gives the viewer an overview of what happened over the 6 weeks on trial.
Yet leaving the question of ‘who to believe’ hanging in the air, as it already was. If anything then it can be concluded that Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, both were quite toxic in their relationship. If an ordinary person’s toxic relationship is put on trial in public, one might find substantial evidence of both partners being equally abusive towards each other, be it verbally, physically or emotionally. However, what turned everyone against Heard was her intention to be the sole victim of all the absurdities that happened in their relationship.
A bad breakup that could have been settled outside of court, without becoming the infamously viral affair, reached the point of even being produced into a Netflix documentary just because of one person’s malicious /revengeful intent that does come from a place of hurt. One can not deny that Heard didn’t suffer in her relationship with Depp. But to what extent that suffering went, will remain a fable/rumour because of the other lies that were linked to the case.
What the documentary series exposes is how the internet views everything with only black or white lenses. In any public case or issue, one side is made to be an absolute evil, while the other is the ultimate hero absolved of any bad deed or behaviour. Meanwhile, there are many grey areas in between that need to be considered, before taking a side and treating it like a ‘ride or die’ situation.
Rating: 3/5
Depp V Heard is currently streaming on Netflix.
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