Mommy Dead and Dearest is the latest documentary from HBO. The film will premiere on HBO May 15th and will give viewers an inside look at the heartbreaking and tragic story of Dee Dee Blanchard and her daughter Gypsy. This crazy story which took the news by store back in 2015 tells the tale that HBO describes as "what starts out as a grisly tale of matricide morphs into a rabbit hole of deception." The gist of the story, if you are not familiar with it, is pretty straightforward at first glance. on June 14, 2015, police head to the home of Dee Dee Blanchard in Springfield, Missouri after a call from the neighbor. When they arrive they find Dee Dee has been murdered and her young disabled daughter, Gypsy is missing. The odd thing is, that Gypsy's wheelchair is still at the house. Later police would discover a facebook post on Gypsy's page that read the chilling phrase "that Bitch is Dead." We quickly learn that this was no random killing and that in fact, Gypsy and her boyfriend had planned the killing and had run away together. If you thought the story was bad now, it gets worse when we learn the truth about Gyspy's childhood upbringing and what eventually drove this young girl to assist in the murder of her own mother.
It is a pretty dark tale and again since HBO never does anything half way we get really in-depth with this story. You are front and center as we explore the events leading up to the murder, Dee Dee basically making her daughter sick to gain sympathy and free things from the public, to the day when Gypsy reaches out to a man on-line with a dark past who will eventually become her boyfriend and partner in crime in the murder. We are given exclusive prison access to Gypsy with actual interviews that she claims this is te first time she has spoken honestly about what happened to her. The story is both heartbreaking and horrifying. Documentarian Erin Lee Carr gives us a chilling look at how social media played a big part in this dark crime and how there is hardly one side to any of this story.
Though hard to imagine what Gypsy had been through you can't help feel bad for her on some level because her situation was clearly a nightmare that she wasn't even aware of for much of the time. It is hard to think that people can be so cruel to their own flesh and blood, but of course, awful things happen every day. Doesn't make it any easier to watch. Fans of crime documentaries should definitely be excited about seeing this one. It will definitely keep you glued to the screen to find out what happens next. We scored Mommy Dead and Dearest with a B. As far as docs go this is a really interesting one and brings to light a lot of interesting psychological conditions like Munchausen by proxy and how that played a huge part in the ultimate end of Dee Dee Blanchard.
Mommy Dead and Dearest will air on May 15th on HBO.