OJ: Made In America

By: Connor Lenahan

I am behind on television and only just tonight have finished the stunning, stellar OJ: Made in America from ESPN and Ezra Edelman. My generation of friends and classmates are the unlucky ones – we were alive during the OJ trial, but only as infants. We thus missed out on the incredible story that’s presented in the seven and a half hours of this documentary.

I have never been more upset to have been born when I was. Everything about the OJ case is fascinating to this day. The intersection of law, murder, true crime, sports, movies, television, advertising, celebrity culture, and even more is unlike anything that could even be fathomed in the wildest of fantasies. If LeBron James or Steph Curry committed a similar crime it wouldn’t draw this level of public coverage and debate. It’s unreal, yet it all happened.

As a fan of non-fiction storytelling, I’m not sure I’ve seen/heard something this beautifully structured and executed. Pacing that makes seven and a half hours seem simultaneously too little and perfect – never too much. Details, including a picture of OJ and Donald Trump together, that beautifully detail the story. Engaging interviews and a wonderful contextualization of the crime in mid-1990s race relations in Los Angeles, I love this documentary.

I will embarrassingly admit that I am also behind on The People vs. OJ Simpson from FX, but that’s getting watched ASAP. With that in mind, there is nothing on TV I have seen, 2016 or the last few years, as breathtaking and beautiful as OJ: Made in America.