Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols and Jessie Misskelley Jr., known far and wide as the West Memphis Three, were reunited in New York City Monday for the premiere of “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory,” the third documentary about the case from filmmakers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky.
After the screening, Misskelley seemed to become uncomfortable and excused himself, leaving Echols and Baldwin to field questions, according to a CBS News story. Here are a few highlights from coverage of the premiere and Q&A:
* Baldwin moved to Seattle, and according to Indie Wire, has taken a construction job, gotten his drivers permit and recently caught a reunion show from traditional-spelling averse indie act Carissa’s Wierd.
* Moviefone had perhaps the best headline: “HBO Is Ready for ‘Paradise Lost 4,’ but the West Memphis 3 Just Want to See a Decent Movie,” which referred to Echols’ terse takedown of “that horrendous ‘Fright Night’ remake,” the first movie he saw after being released.
* According to The Huffington Post, HBO Documentaries head Sheila Nevins asked Baldwin and Echols if they thought people were basically good. “Yes, people are good,” Baldwin said. “Look at everybody here today. We can’t let the actions of a few bad people tarnish what we see around us.” Echols was a bit more circumspect. “I think that’s far too big a conclusion for me to come to,” he said. “Ask me in 50 years.”