Even though the Idaho murder case in 2022 is still remarkably fresh in memory, especially if you have been following the news and social media coverage, the amount of content made about this tragedy is no longer new.
To be honest, this case has already been adapted into documentary form more than once, including another four-parter on Prime Video. Because of that, this latest Netflix docuseries, The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare, may not initially seem like a particularly fresh addition to the true-crime landscape.
Still, The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare takes a somewhat different approach by focusing heavily on the emotional devastation experienced by the victims' families and the wider community following the murders of four University of Idaho students in 2022.
On Nov 13, 2022, Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle had their futures stolen from them. Their bodies were discovered in an off-campus home, leaving a tight-knit college town shattered and a nation gripped by grief. For weeks, a killer walked free while fear and speculation consumed Moscow, Idaho.
This three-part documentary chronicles one of the most chilling murder cases in recent memory. It attempts to honour the four young lives that were lost while tracing the investigation from that devastating night to the arrest that followed.
The structure is fairly straightforward -- the first episode immerses viewers in the chaos of the night of the murders through police body-camera footage and the confusion surrounding the initial discovery.
The second follows the investigation that led to the suspect's arrest, while the third focuses on the trial and its aftermath.
Obviously, this is an emotionally draining watch. The series is filled with interviews from the families and friends of the four students as they struggle to make sense of what happened, process their grief and anger, and grapple with whether justice was truly served.
From that perspective, the documentary succeeds. It allows viewers into deeply raw and intimate moments, where family members speak candidly about the investigation, the suspect and the long emotional aftermath.
But what this docuseries does not do is examine the case with much analytical depth or critical scrutiny. If you go in expecting previously unrevealed facts, significant new evidence or a deeper investigative perspective, you are likely to be disappointed. That is ultimately where I land on this series.
I appreciate the human perspective and the way the events are recounted through the experiences of parents, siblings, friends and investigators.
Those interviews help paint a fuller picture of who Madison, Kaylee, Ethan and Xana were beyond the headlines. They remind us that they were real people, not merely the four victims in a notorious homicide case.
That is an important reminder, and the documentary deserves credit for preserving their humanity.
The problem is that we have already seen much of this before. Although this series includes more personal interviews than some previous documentaries, I expected a more comprehensive examination of the investigation itself.
The early police body-camera footage is undeniably compelling. Watching officers arrive at the scene for the first time creates a sense of immediacy that is difficult to replicate. We watch them ask questions, attempt to understand the situation, and deal with the growing pressure from neighbours and the media.
From a journalistic standpoint, the series misses numerous opportunities to explore the facts in greater detail. A documentary does not have to prove guilt or innocence, but it should ask difficult questions and examine the available evidence with rigour.
Several moments stood out to me because they were introduced and then left hanging.
For example, investigators mention a set of footprints in the snow outside the residence that appeared to lead towards the rear entrance and then away from the home. Later, investigators simply state that the footprints were not connected to the crime.
Why? How were they eliminated? The documentary never explains this, and the filmmakers never ask the obvious follow-up questions.
Another example involves the amount of blood at the crime scene. Police officers describe the scene as extraordinarily bloody, and the documentary even shows blood seeping through an interior wall and becoming visible on the exterior of the house.
Yet the series states that the key DNA evidence was found on a knife sheath, while little or no blood evidence connected the suspect outside the home, along the escape route, or in the suspect's car after it was recovered in another state. Investigators say that no such evidence was found, but the documentary never probes what that actually means.
However, if you have already seen other documentaries about this case and are primarily interested in hearing from the victims' families and friends, this can still be a worthwhile watch.
The interviews are well shot, the production values are solid and the emotional storytelling is effective. I was simply hoping for a more substantial examination of the investigation, especially given how promising the opening episode feels.
The lack of genuinely new information, the uneven pacing and the somewhat cheesy cliffhangers become increasingly frustrating. This case is still relatively recent, and the documentary functions more as a comprehensive emotional recap than as a meaningful investigative re-examination.
It also fails to explore the suspect's psychology or his possible motive in any meaningful way. And ultimately, if it cannot answer the question of why the person killed those four students, then every documentary about this case will inevitably remain trapped in the same unresolved space.
- The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare
- Starring Anthony Dahlinger, Baylie Miller, Maya Hippenstiel (as themselves)
- Directed by Skye Borgman
- Now streaming on Netflix
