A Cry in the Dark

In 1980 Lindy and Michael Chamberlain are vacationing in Queensland, Australia with their two boys and infant girl. One night, Lindy puts the baby to sleep in the tent and heads back to the group when she sees a dingo exiting the tent. She runs back and sees her baby is missing and a hunt begins to find the remains. What follows is a nightmare involving not only the morning of the couple’s dead baby but also a police inquest, trial, media frenzy, gossip, circumstantial evidence, and religious prejudice. Fred Schepisi’s A Cry in the Dark in an intricate recreation of events of Australia’s most known court case. From the search for the baby, to the media’s editing of the Chamberlain’s interviews, to the police investigation, to the court details, we are given what seems like a firsthand account of a strange and tragic case. Meryl Streep and Sam Neill are outstanding in the lead roles, Streep portraying a strong and slightly cold individual and Neill a devout man at first who finds himself falling apart at the seems under the weight of the circumstances. A Cry in the Dark is a wonderful example of translating a real life incident into film.