Netflix’s New True Crime Documentary Nabbed a Rare Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score

Nearly 25 years after Elizabeth Smart was abducted from her bedroom in the middle of the night, a new Netflixdocumentary is giving her the chance to tell her side of the story—and audiences are enthralled.

The film currently boasts a rare perfect score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer.

Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart, a new 91-minute documentary feature that arrived on Netflix on January 21st has been wowing critics since its arrival. The film, which allows Elizabeth to recount her terrifying ordeal in her own words, features exclusive interviews with Smart and her story, who share new details on the case that rocked a nation. 

On June 5, 2002, Smart—who was just 14 years old at the time—was kidnapped at gunpoint from the bedroom of her Salt Lake City home with only her 9-year-old sister, Mary Katherine, with whom she shared a bedroom. 

Over the next several months, as police and the public attempted to track her down, various sighting of Smart were reported. As the months passed, the public began to give up hope that Smart would ever be found, but her family remained vigilant. Eventually, even Mary Katherine realized that she recognized the voice of the man who had been in her bedroom as someone who had done work on the Smart family home.

After nine months of searching, Smart was eventually recovered. Her abductors were identified as Brian David Mitchell, a self-proclaimed prophet, and his wife, Wanda Barzee, who spent months abusing and terrorizing Smart.

In addition to interviews with the detectives who refused to give up on finding Smart, it’s the victim herself—now a 38-year-old wife and mother of three who has dedicated her life to advocating for children’s safety—who gives some of the horrifying, and compelling commentary. Especially in her decision to reclaim her story and reshape the narrative.

What Are Critics Saying About Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart?

“It is clear that the disavowal of shame is her main message and, presumably, a large part of her reasoning for taking part in the documentary,” The Guardian’s Lucy Mangan wrote of the film. “It is striking and undeniably uplifting how firmly she explains herself, outlines her extraordinary suffering and the psychological effects of intense fear at the hands of a violent man (and his accomplice Wanda Barzee), and puts the responsibility back on Mitchell for what he did and how entitled he felt to do it.”

The New York Times’ Glenn Kenny was equally impressed with Smart’s resilience, writing that “Her on-camera testimony is devastating. Recollecting her assaults by one of her kidnappers, she tells the viewer that she held onto the belief that, ‘If I can hold him off long enough, someone will rescue me.’ That’s heartbreaking. But her resilience and frankly astonishing good humor come through as well. That her life since her ordeal has returned to normal—she’s now married, with children of her own—adds another dimension to her miracle.”

Brian David Mitchell was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Barzee was released from prison in September 2018 after serving a 15-year sentence. She is currently living in Salt Lake City.