Bingeworthy
🍿🍿🍿🍿
Interesting
😵😵😵
Relaxing
😟
Unnerving
😬😬😬
Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel debuted on Netflix on February 10th, 2021, and explores the mysterious disappearance of Elisa Lam, a 21-year-old Canadian UBC student who went on a solo trip through California in 2013.
Elisa's disappearance on February 1st, 2013, the day she was scheduled to check out of the Cecil Hotel after a four day stay there, started a hurricane of public interest. Shortly after the Lam elevator video (you have to watch this) was posted by the LAPD, internet sleuths took the investigation to a whole new level, sharing theories and mass speculations some of which delved deep into dark conspiracies.
The Not-So-Good
The series is a total of four episodes, and even within the first episode I was wondering if there was any mystery at all.
The depiction of Elisa by the filmmakers portrays her geniality as being naive. An unworldly young woman, who although being from Vancouver and having already travelled through San Diego alone, was portrayed as being "overwhelmed" and "disoriented" in downtown Los Angeles. Let's remember that even though Skid Row in downtown LA is quoted to have a homeless population of over 4000, the Downtown EastSide in Vancouver has a homeless population of over 2000. Both populations are large and I find it difficult to believe that Elisa wouldn't have had any experience in these types of socio-economic neighbourhoods; the idea that she would be so "overhwhelmed" by her environment and wouldn't know how to handle herself seems ridiculous.
The voiceover actor narrating Elisa's Tumblr Blog further compounds the depiction of her as a very childlike young adult, who lacks experience and is "younger" than the 21 year old solo traveler she really was. Just tell me the story without adding in a very specific portrayal of Elisa's voice. Generally in documentaries/non-fiction series I despise voiceovers as they bias the viewer's opinion by greatly influencing a person's characterization.
The above representations of her had me asking very early on "How do they know?" Personally, these shared misrepresentations by the storytellers took away from the mystery of the case. They purposefully and overtly painted a picture of her character and this manipulation technique ultimately annoyed me all the way through.
The depiction of Elisa by the filmmakers portrays her geniality as being naive. An unworldly young woman, who although being from Vancouver and having already travelled through San Diego alone, was portrayed as being "overwhelmed" and "disoriented" in downtown Los Angeles. Let's remember that even though Skid Row in downtown LA is quoted to have a homeless population of over 4000, the Downtown EastSide in Vancouver has a homeless population of over 2000. Both populations are large and I find it difficult to believe that Elisa wouldn't have had any experience in these types of socio-economic neighbourhoods; the idea that she would be so "overhwhelmed" by her environment and wouldn't know how to handle herself seems ridiculous.
The voiceover actor narrating Elisa's Tumblr Blog further compounds the depiction of her as a very childlike young adult, who lacks experience and is "younger" than the 21 year old solo traveler she really was. Just tell me the story without adding in a very specific portrayal of Elisa's voice. Generally in documentaries/non-fiction series I despise voiceovers as they bias the viewer's opinion by greatly influencing a person's characterization.
The above representations of her had me asking very early on "How do they know?" Personally, these shared misrepresentations by the storytellers took away from the mystery of the case. They purposefully and overtly painted a picture of her character and this manipulation technique ultimately annoyed me all the way through.
The Good
The exploration of whether or not internet sleuthing communities could contribute meaningful counsel on this bizarre case was engrossing. Furthermore, there is a running theme through the series if they should contribute. The culmination of their investigation definitely drew parallels with our present day discourse on "cancel" culture.The third episode was by far the most fascinating as the entire catalogue of conspiracy theories was presented and even as a skeptic viewer, a true believer in Occam's Razor, I was enthralled by some of the hypotheses. The suppositions that were drawn from the online community and general public were striking in their depth and synchronicity. There were a few talk-out-loud moments for me in this episode which had me shouting phrases of incredulity. Excellent episode.
Overall, the larger themes presented in the four episode series, overshadow the missteps in representation. There are many interesting facts and histories here outside of Elisa Lam's disappearance that make me recommend this show. It's binge-worthiness is boosted by the fact that it is only four episodes, so you can watch it in one night. The mystery of the case is compelling, if like me, you do not already know the outcome of Elisa Lam's disappearance. This is not a stress-relieving binge watch, but it ticks off the box for escapism. You can dive into it and it is engaging. The series is definitely unnerving. I watched all episodes in one sitting before bed and ended up having nightmares concerning some of the themes and depressive revelations that were discussed. Don't watch this if you are looking for a pick-me-up. Do watch this if you are looking for a good mystery.
