Sunday, October 16, 2011

Conviction

Betty-Anne Waters holding her brother Kenny Waters' hand
as they depart Middlesex Superior Court in Cambridge Mass.
(AP Photo/Steven Senne, File.) 

Conviction is a movie based on the true story of  a man named Kenneth Waters who gets falsely accused of murder and is sentenced life in prison without parole. Throughout his whole life, Kenny and his sister Betty-Ann have been moved around from shelter to shelter because their mother was deemed to be an unfit parent. They always supported one another and only had each other- they were truly the best of friends and deeply cared for each other. The story gets compelling when Kenny gets arrested and falsely accused with murder. Betty-Ann always knew that her brother was innocent and would literally do all that is in her power to set him free. She started looking for lawyers to defend her brother, however a lawyer for a case this big would need $25,000 up front before even looking into the case. This obviously a lot of money especially for Betty-Anne who works as a waitress at a bar in a small town in Massachusetts. Betty-Ann came up with an idea to go back to school, get her GED, get a BA degree and apply for law school. As crazy it sounded and as unrealistic as it is, she was determined and dedicated. Nothing would stop her from accomplishing this dream, all she needed was for Kenny to be patient with her. She wasn't sure if she would make it to law school or if she would even pass her courses, but she was determined to literally sacrifice everything for her brother.  After an eighteen year struggle, Betty-Anne became Kenny's attorney and fought to set him free.

This movie really moved me. It is such an inspiring story of true love, devotion and determination. It teaches you that you are never too old to follow your dreams and nothing will set you back from your dreams other than yourself. If you have the will and the drive to succeed, and if you believe in yourself, you can do any and everything you set your mind to. It just goes to show you it's not about what you know, its about how much you care. 

"The only thing that stands between a person and what they want in life is the will to try it, and the faith to believe its possible."