Kill Your Darling

In 1990, the beheaded body of a young woman was found in the Westersingel canal in Rotterdam. It was impossible to identify the body until 2008, when new DNA techniques uncovered that the victim was the American model Melissa Halstead. A joint investigation by the Rotterdam cold case unit and their colleagues in the United Kingdom led to John Sweeney, who had a tumultuous relationship with Halstead – as evidenced by the many lurid drawings he made during their time together. Director Jaap van Hoewijk observes the attempts by police, forensic labs and family and friends of the victim to reconstruct the past. Sweeney, who is sentenced to life in prison, gets a voice in the film as well, through a re-recorded voice-over based on a lengthy letter he sent Van Hoewijk. When Sweeney calls from prison not long after sending the letter, Van Hoewijk seizes the opportunity to question Sweeney himself.