A dispute between two Florida neighbors requires the police to make several visits after one woman is annoyed by another's children playing loudly across the street. Through BWC (Body worn cameras on the police officers), we meet both women and the children, and the ensuing events consist mostly of she said, she said. That is, until a fatality brings the heretofore quarrel to tragic levels.
At its core, "The Perfect Neighbor" pits an elderly, caucasian woman, Susan Lorincz, who ultimately shoots and kills the African American single mother, Ajike Owens, while claiming she did it because she felt her life was in danger. The movie explores the issues of race, the ethics of 'stand your ground' law, and the judicial system's reluctance to immediately charge the deranged Lorincz with murder, when it is clear they would not have hesitated in swiftly charging Owens, if the situation was reversed.
A documentary as intense and engrossing as Errol Morris' "A Thin Blue Line," Geeta Gandbhir's film is a superb examination of how an undoubtedly damaged mind like Lorincz was allowed to threaten and ultimately kill, when she should've been in a mental institution all along.
A riveting, heart-wrenching experience.
☆☆☆☆
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