Wisconsin Death Trip (1999)

Director:

James Marsh

Writers:

Michael Lesy (book)
James Marsh (writer)

Release Date:

9 March 2000 (Denmark)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Wisconsin Death Trip is an intimate, shocking and sometimes hilarious account of the disasters that...

Plot Keywords:

Newspaper | Wisconsin | Death | 1890s | Murder

Awards:

3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Ian Holm	...	Narrator (voice)
Jeffrey Golden	...	Editor (as Jeff Golden)
Jo Vukelich	...	Mary Sweeney
Marcus Monroe	...	Young Anderson
Marilyn White	...	Pauline L'Allemand
John Schneider	...	Asylum Clerk / Whispering Voice
John Baltes	...	Undertaker
Raeleen McMillion	...	Crying Woman
Krista Grambow	...	Mourning Woman
Clay Anton	...	Eloping Couple (male)
Bobby Jo Westphal	...	Eloping Couple (female)
Zeke Dasho	...	Edgar L'Allemand
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Kathryn Anderson	...	Mrs. Larson
Kevin Anderson	...	Larson Child
Liam Anderson	...	Larson Child
Molly Anderson	...	Mrs. Larson
Nathan Butchart	...	Dead Boy
Angel Hamilton	...	Fire Girl
Ali Ide	...	Winter Bride
Brittany Istre	...	Baptized Girl
Marc Jacobs	...	Hanging Man
Dana Joseph	...	Girl at Window
Joshua Kapp	...	Baby
Eddie Kunz	...	Abandoned Boy
Cody Marenes	...	Boy
Tyler Marenes	...	Running Boy
Tess Miller	...	Coffin Girl
Braden Moran	...	Husband
Michael Olson	...	Asylum Guard
Emily Roske	...	Sister
Will Roske	...	9 Year Old Shooter
Clayton Simchick	...	Hanging Man (as Clay Simchick)
Debbi Sommi	...	Servant Girl
Jeana Stillman	...	Drowned Girl
Steven Strobel	...	Union Man
M. Scott Taulman	...	The Jailer

Also Known As:

Kuoleman loukko (Finland) [fi]

Runtime:

76 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Black River Falls, Wisconsin, USA

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

Broadcast in the UK as part of the BBC's prestigious "Arena" (1975) series.

Soundtrack:

Ave Maria

Fascinating look at the "good old days"

This gripping documentary looks at events, many of them dealing with homicide, suicide, and mental illness, in the life of the town of Black River Falls, Wisconsin, during the nineteenth century.

If you think we are presently living in an unprecedentedly violent age, it will be enlightening to see the number of husbands who shot wives, wives who shot husbands, lovers who shot each other, parents who killed children, and children who killed whomever, in this sleepy midwestern town, filled with hard-working citizens of German and Norwegian descent.

Added into the mix is a remarkable number of mentally ill or drug-addicted people, notably Mary Sweeney, the "Wisconsin Window-Smasher," who destroyed tens of thousands of dollars worth of windows across the state, while taking cocaine to "steady her nerves."

The film is a combination of still photographs from the era and black-and-white set-piece recreations of the incidents, narrated beautifully by Ian Holm. The viewer should be warned, however, that it is not until the very last frame of the credits that we learn that not all the photographs shown necessarily correspond to the people in the incidents described.

A great work of social history, exploring a side of life many people prefer to ignore.