Review of Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired (2008) by David C — 01 Feb 2011

Wanted and Desired is a documentary that refuses to make a direct judgement on Roman Polanski with regard to his infamous conviction of having sex with a 13-year-old girl. However, in so doing it exposes America's relationship with the mass media, revealing an ugly truth that overshadows Polanski's undeniable act of wrongdoing.

The documentary covers all the obvious areas that surrounded Polanski's case. It neatly illustrates how Polanski's made a name for himself in Hollywood in the build-up to the two major events involving him that shook the whole film world; namely the murder of his wife Sharon Tate by the Manson gang, and his unlawful sex with 13-year-old Samantha Geimer.

The footage used in Wanted and Desired is impressive, and portrays Polanski as a big player in Hollywood during the vibrant Sixties period. All the footage of Polanski himself is collected, and Zenovich does not personally nterview with him, maintaining a sense of impartiality. The most interesting information in the film is provided by the District Attorneys responsible for both the defence and prosecution of Polanski. Neither of them gives their opinion on Polanski in relation to the case, but both reveal instead that the Judge for the case was a spotlight-obsessed man whose hesitant decision-making on the case was completely intertwined with how the media would perceive him.

Wanted and Desired does not attempt to portray Polanski as a wronged or guilty man, but instead points to the media-frenzied culture of America as leading to the Polanski's escape from America and the lack of resolution to the case. The media is shown as tainting the case on every level, right up to the judge, as the DAs working on the case attempted in vain to get on with their jobs and complete the case. Even the victim herself, who is interviewed for the film, stated that such was the hawkishness of the press that the trauma of being caught up in their circus made her lose sight of the initial wrong done upon her.

Using soundtracks and footage from Polanski films, Wanted and Desired draws ironic parallels between the themes portrayed in his works and the corruption and frenzy surrounding his case. On top of revealing the media's influence, it also harrowingly depicts the shattering effect that Tate's murder had on Hollywood, and the dark side of the Sixties counterculture.

Aside from the footage showing Polanski after the Tate murder, he is not portrayed as a sympathetic or endearing man. Yet one does come away from the film feeling that Polanski's escape to France was the kind of 'Fuck You' that the American media culture deserved. No one denies Polanski's wrongdoing, not even Polanski himself (who after all pleads guilty in the case). However, Wanted and Desired uses his case to illustrate a culture so gluttonously obsessed with its sensationalistic media that it has lost sight of the most fundamental aspect of its own justice system; impartiality.