A new documentary will debut Friday night at the Sundance Film Festival that suggests the FBI’s so-called “investigation” of sexual assault allegations made against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh “fell woefully short” and appear to have been little more than a cursory look at whether or not Kavanaugh did indeed attack multiple women.
IndieWire reports that the film, entitled “Justice” is largely cloaked in secrecy.
Sundance has added a secret documentary about Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh from director Doug Liman to its lineup, Sundance programmers announced Thursday.
The film “Justice” is intended to screen on Friday night at 8:30 p.m. MT as a special premiere at Park Avenue Theater followed by a Press & Industry screening at 10 p.m. MT, and IndieWire has learned the film is also available for acquisition.
Liman, who is known for films like “Swingers,” “Edge of Tomorrow,” “The Bourne Identity,” and more, self-financed the project and is making his documentary feature debut with “Justice.”
Kim Yutani, festival director of programming, explained why “Justice” had been added at the last minute:
“This is a film that focuses on the allegations against Brett Kavanaugh and the investigation that ensued. It is a very powerful documentary that we felt was important to add. We saw it practically yesterday, and it’s a film that I think challenges existing narratives, I think it asks tough questions, and I think it provokes conversations.”
While Liman was a bit more specific in his discussion of his documentary, he stopped short of revealing the outcome of the investigation his film undertook.
“It shouldn’t be this hard to have an open and honest conversation about whether or not a Justice on the Supreme Court assaulted numerous women as a young man. Thanks to this fantastic investigative team and the brave souls who trusted us with their stories, ‘Justice’ picks up where the FBI investigation into Brett Kavanaugh fell woefully short. The film examines our judicial process and the institutions behind it, highlighting bureaucratic missteps and political powergrabs that continue to have an outsized impact on our nation today. Sundance gave me and countless other independent filmmakers our big breaks, so it’s especially meaningful for me to return with my first documentary.”
Kavanaugh was accused by women who knew him in both high school and college of taking inappropriate advantage of them, usually when he was under the influence of alcohol, with the Washington Post laying out all of the allegations against him in a 2018 article.
The central charge against Kavanaugh — that he sexually assaulted Christine Blasey Ford while intoxicated during a party — lacks this element. Ford said she kept quiet about the incident until recent years. But she has provided witnesses who say she told them about the allegation before Kavanaugh was nominated to the Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, two other women have also emerged with similar allegations against Kavanaugh, also in the context of heavy drinking. He has adamantly denied that he ever attacked any woman.
Did the U.S. Senate place a serial sexual assaulter on the highest court in the land? Maybe we’ll finally get an answer to that question.
