rayven crawford

When viewing a true-crime documentary, we often hope to see the case solved quickly and the assailant brought to justice. However, several of these documentaries have yet to find a satisfactory close and, unfortunately, leave viewers biting their nails in apprehension. If you are ready to dive into the true-crime documentaries that frustrate us the most, you’ll have to prepare yourself for thrilling questions that may not have answers.

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• The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann

Photo: Netflix

Madeleine McCann was a British child who was abducted from her bed in a Portuguese resort town. She was only 3 years old. Madeleine’s case has been labeled “one of the biggest missing-child cases in history.” On the night of Madeleine’s disappearance, her parents and their friends dined in a nearby restaurant, 180 feet away from where the children was sleeping. An hour and a half after the families had left for dinner, Madeleine’s mother, Kate, checked on the children and discovered that Madeleine was missing.

The documentary The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann takes a deep dive into Madeleine’s unsolved case. Director Chris Smith focused heavily on creating a realistic viewing experience, and he aimed to take the viewer on a journey similar to the one the British and Portuguese public went on. Over the course of eight episodes, viewers find themselves in a world of news footage and interviews with key figures like the journalists and detectives responsible for educating the public on the case. Although the documentary was released without the support of the McCann family and has not brought in any new tips regarding the case, the family continues to search for answers to solve the case for good.

• • Who Took Johnny

Photo: GathrFilms

In 1982, Johnny Gosch, a 12-year-old from West Des Moines, IA, disappeared after leaving to complete his paper route two blocks from his home. Eyewitnesses claimed to have seen Johnny enter a blue car that sped out of the area. In searching for Johnny’s possible whereabouts, investigators were only able to recover the red wagon Johnny would use to carry his undelivered newspapers.

After almost 40 years, the disappearance of Johnny remains a mystery, and his mother still searches for answers.

Who Took Johnny focuses on the efforts of his mother, who has worked to find clues regarding his disappearance since the day he was abducted. Also following the plight of Johnny’s father and local investigators, the film combines recent interviews and archival footage to help find answers to the Des Moines mystery.

• • The Imposter

Photo: Indomina Releasing

In 1994, teenager Nicholas Barclay disappeared after playing basketball with his friends in San Antonio, TX. After searching the city for Barclay to no avail, authorities and Nicholas’s family presumed he was murdered, but a body was never discovered. Following years of grieving, the Barclay family received the surprise of their lives. Three years after their son’s disappearance, the Barclay’s telephone rang, and on the other end of the line was the voice of their son. After the family prompted Nicholas for answers, he claimed to be in Spain, scared, lost, and wanting to come home. Without hesitation, the family insisted that Nicholas fly home, and when he arrived, they welcomed him back with open arms. Suddenly, the family felt whole again, but people around the Barclay family noticed something was not quite right.

The Imposter focuses on the central investigation of Nicholas Barclay’s disappearance, as well as the imposter who invaded the Barclay home, claiming to be their long-lost son. Through interviews with the Barclay family and the imposter himself, Frédéric Bourdin, we hear the various stories and emotions of their lost hope and how the imposter was able to trick the Barclay family and the Spanish and American governments. With twists and turns that grip the viewer to the end, The Imposter is a nail-biting must-watch for anyone interested in diving into the mind of Texas’s No. 1 trickster.

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• • Out of Thin Air

Photo: Saga Film/Mosaic Films/Netflix

In January 1974, Gudmundur Einarsson was at a local nightclub in Iceland when he decided to walk home in a blizzard. He was noted to have been drinking heavily, and the blizzard made for a frigid night. When Einarsson did not return home, investigators were notified of his possible disappearance. Investigators searched around the nightclub and surrounding areas for days, but Einarsson’s body was never discovered, and they deemed his disappearance the result of hypothermia. In Iceland, disappearances like Einarsson’s are not uncommon; therefore, investigators did not further express the need to explore his case. However, 10 months later, Geirfinnur Einarsson – no relation to Gudmundur – vanished, and investigators believed both Einarsson disappearances may have resulted from something sinister.

Out of Thin Air, directed by Dylan Howitt, tells the story of Iceland’s most significant criminal investigation. When police originally began their investigation, the community thought they were at a loss when no bodies or suspects were found. However, six suspects soon confessed to the murder of the two men. These confessions shocked the people of Iceland, and it seemed as if justice had been served. However, the investigation soon went awry when the six suspects lost trust in their memories, and the investigators were under intense scrutiny. Out of Thin Air uses first-person testimony to take viewers on a reconstruction of the haunting Einarsson case.

• • The Keepers

Photo: Netflix

A mystery that has plagued the Catholic Church and its members for over 50 years plays out in The Keepers, directed by famed documentarian Ryan White. The film focuses on a Catholic scandal from the ’60s that is still being uncovered today. In 1969, Sister Cathy Cesnik, a teacher at Baltimore’s Archbishop Keough High School, was found murdered in a secluded wood.

While Cesnik’s disappearance remains unsolved, the documentary dives into the potential idea that Cesnik may have found herself in abusive circumstances. The seven-episode series follows White and former students as they dive into the mystery of Cesnik’s murder and the possible involvement of former school chaplain, Father Maskell. Maskell, now deceased, was revealed to have participated in shocking sexual abuse and institutional cover-ups. The series reveals the disturbing truths behind Cesnik’s murder and the role of the Catholic Church through intensive interviews and reenactments.

• • The Hunt for the Zodiac Killer

Photo: History Channel

Throughout the 1960s and ’70s, the Zodiac Killer terrorized America with strange codes, letters, and unidentified serial murders. Investigators have followed the killer’s endless trail of codes, but they are ultimately more difficult to decipher than the Nazi Enigma Code, and the Zodiac Killer has never been found. Nearly 50 years later, HISTORY launched a limited nonfiction series, The Hunt for the Zodiac Killer, to finally crack the puzzling code.

Broken into five parts, the series follows a team of investigators, codebreakers, and a supercomputer named CARMEL that was programmed to think like a killer who believe they have broken a significant portion of the killer’s code. The partial discovery allowed the team access to police files, witnesses, clues, and the cooperation of the CIA and FBI. The discoveries made throughout this miniseries may be what investigators have needed to bring the Zodiac Killer to justice, but so far, the case remains unsolved.

• • Killing Jimmy Hoffa

Photo: Indie Rights

Jimmy Hoffa’s disappearance might be one of American history’s best-known unsolved cases. The famed labor leader was dining at a Bloomfield Township restaurant in Michigan and then was never seen again. Hoffa was assumed to have possible ties to the CIA, presidential assassinations, and narcotics trafficking.

Killing Jimmy Hoffa premiered in February 2005 amidst the 40th anniversary of his disappearance. From the beginning of production, documentary producer Scott Burnstein’s goal was to present a complete analysis of Hoffa to the audience. Burnstein, also an attorney and leading expert on organized crime, hoped to highlight commentary from ex-FBI agents, journalists, and ex-prosecutors. Offering compelling insight into the world of organized crime, Killing Jimmy Hoffa leaves the audience wondering if garbage sanitation could be the key to finding the answers to Hoffa’s unsolved disappearance.

• • The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson

Photo: Netflix

On July 6, 1992, Marsha P. Johnson’s body was discovered by police in the Hudson River off the West Village Piers in New York City. Johnson was a larger-than-life activist who fought for LGBTQ+ rights for over 20 years before her untimely death. While investigators ruled Johnson’s death a suicide, Johnson’s close friends believe otherwise. Johnson, a prominent drag queen in New York, had had several violent run-ins with the NYPD. Johnson’s past caused her close friends to assume her death was a homicide.

The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson is narrated by her close friend, Victoria Cruz. Cruz, an LGBTQ+ activist, decided to investigate what led to the death of Johnson as unsolved murders of transgender women continued to increase throughout the United States. Highlighting the effect Johnson had on her community, the 105-minute film is filled with the gratitude of those lucky enough to have known Johnson and the confirmation of Johnson’s reluctance to follow the crowd.

More The Death and Life of Marsha P Johnson

• • Wormwood

Photo: Netflix

In 1953, Frank Olson, a biological warfare scientist, was found dead after plunging from the 13th floor of the Statler Hotel in New York City. The public pondered if Olson’s death resulted from suicide; however, Olson’s family had other ideas. Olson participated in research for a CIA program called MKUltra, a mind-controlling initiative, and had recently refused to continue his work. Olson’s scientific work led his family to believe he was killed, although they have never been able to prove it.

Wormwood is a documentary by famed director Errol Morris. It follows Olson’s son, Eric, now in his 70s, as he attempts to make sense of his father’s death. This six-part miniseries blends archival footage, interviews, and dramatic reenactments to gain insight into Olson’s death while also showing how Eric grew up after losing his father.

• • Carmel: Who Killed Maria Marta?

Photo: Netflix

In 2002, at the age of 50, sociologist and charity worker Maria Marta Garcia Belsunce was found murdered in her home in Ilar, Buenos Aires. Originally, investigators were unsure of Belsunce’s cause of death until her family insisted on a thorough autopsy. When the autopsy was conducted, it was found that Belsunce had been shot five times in the head before being dumped in her bathtub. Investigators were initially unaware of the gunshot wounds, as someone had sealed them up with glue. This discovery led investigators to accuse Belsunce’s husband of her murder, assuming he used the glue to cover up the crime. However, suspicions quickly moved to her half-brother when he claimed to have found and thrown away a bullet in the home the same day Belsunce’s body was discovered.

The documentary Carmel: Who Killed Maria Marta? explores numerous theories around her unsolved death and how investigators initially missed the signs of foul play. The death of Belsunce was one of the most prominent unsolved cases in Argentinian history and still plagues her family and the prosecutors who were involved.

More Carmel: Who Killed Maria Marta?

Photo: Roxie Releasing/Lions Gate Entertainment

One of the most significant unsolved cases in hip-hop history involves artists Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. Both artists gained fame through representing their respective neighborhoods – Shakur representing Los Angeles and the West Coast, and Biggie representing New York and the East Coast. The rivalry between the fans and artists of East and West Coast hip-hop came to a head in 1996 and 1997 when both rappers were shot and killed within six months.

The documentary Biggie & Tupac follows director Nick Broomfield as he interviews famed record label producer and potential suspect Suge Knight. Bloomfield’s film also introduces Russell Poole, an ex-cop who provides evidence that the untimely demise of both rappers was allegedly a cover-up. Suge Knight was a feared man in the LA area and may have had connections to both the LAPD and LA gangs, which may have led to the deaths of Smalls and Shakur – and to hip-hop lovers worldwide still looking for closure.

Photo: Netflix

On September 26, 2014, a bus filled with 43 future educators left for Iguala, Mexico, never to return. The students were attending Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College and intended to take the bus to Iguala to participate in a political demonstration. When the bus and the students never returned, their families rallied to find answers.

The 43 focuses on the social unrest in Mexico that may have played a role in the students’ disappearance. Mexican government officials theorize that corrupt police discovered the students, then handed them over to a drug cartel, mistaking the students to be a rival cartel who were hiding drugs on their bus. The theory then states that the cartel shot the students and threw their remains in a nearby river to rid themselves of the situation. However, further investigations have revealed inconsistencies within that theory and have encouraged the family members and the nation to continue the fight for answers.

• • Murder on Middle Beach

Photo: HBO

On March 3, 2010, Barbara Hamburg was brutally murdered near her home in Madison, CT. Investigators claim the murder was a crime of passion, but the case quickly grew cold with insufficient evidence. Hamburg’s son, Madison, had always wondered what led to his mother’s untimely death and made it his goal to solve her murder while also absolving the people he loved of suspicion. In his directorial debut, Madison spent eight years interviewing family members and close friends to learn about his mother’s life.

Through the four-part documentary series, Murder on Middle Beach, Hamburg focuses on connecting his mother’s personal life to her murder case by using first-person accounts to uncover family secrets, find connections to suspicious locals, and reveal decades-old familial resentment. Offering overwhelming insight into a family torn apart by criticism, Murder on Middle Beach leaves viewers wanting answers just as much as Madison himself.

Photo: Investigation Discovery

In the late 1970s, Oakland County, MI, was plagued by an unknown killer called the Oakland County Child Killer. Two boys and two girls disappeared during the reign of the regional killer.

However, the total number of children the killer may have murdered is unknown. In 1977, the sporadic deaths of local children seemed to halt, and no one has been prosecuted for the crimes.

Children of the Snow follows writer and Oakland county native J. Reuben Appelman as he reveals that he narrowly escaped the grasp of the Oakland County Child Killer when he was younger.

Appelman, haunted by the memory of a man attempting to coax him into his car, explores old documents and files to find possible answers to the killer’s identity. Appelman believes the police may have had evidence of who the killer was but let him walk free.

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