Cold Blooded: The Clutter Family Murders

The 1959 murders on four members of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas became infamous around the world thanks to Truman Capote’s international bestseller In Cold Blood. This film is in part a highly-detailed reconstruction of the case, devoting a great deal of attention to the backgrounds of the victims and the two perpetrators, the court case and finally the execution of the murderers in 1965. The documentary also examines the role played by Capote, who makes frequent appearances in archive footage. For the descendants of those involved, the classic non-fiction work and the gruesome crime it describes have become inextricably linked. Relatives talk about the murders and the book, and the huge impact they have had on their lives. The film also examines the impact on the tiny town of Holcomb, on friends of the family, and even on the actors who took part in the movie version in 1967. Cold Blooded is a reexamination of a well-known story, but it also turns out to have some surprises of its own.