Television series

Exhibit A

Name: Exhibit A
Genre: Documentary, Crime
Released: 2019

Crime
Very dark

Exhibit A dissects real cases where shaky forensic science put innocent people in prison. Netflix's six-part series walks you through the evidence—or lack of it—with clarity and controlled anger. For anyone who's watched a crime show and wondered: how much of this is actually solid? This is the reckoning.

TVMaze rating

3.7

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you care less about whodunit than about how a courtroom comes to trust a dubious technique, and you want the science picked apart carefully rather than sensationalised.

Skip it if you want a gripping whodunit or a light night in, since this is an argument about methods, sober and repetitive in its insistence.

What it asks of you: Four episodes of about half an hour each, brisk and sober, with close attention to lab procedure and testimony; it wants you following the reasoning, not riding suspense.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Making a Murderer2015

Netflix's landmark series that introduced millions to the possibility of police incompetence and corruption. Steven Avery's case is a masterclass in how evidence gets mishandled, questioned, and weaponised against the accused.

But It's long, consuming, and the debate around guilt or innocence still rages. Some viewers feel manipulated by its framing, and that ambiguity can be maddening.

The Staircase2022

A real murder case told eight times over, as understanding shifts with each new piece of information. It captures the vertiginous feeling of not knowing what to believe—exactly what Exhibit A examines.

But Thirteen hours is a commitment. The pacing slows in the middle, and the ultimate resolution won't satisfy everyone, which might be the point.

The Trial of the Chicago 72020

Aaron Sorkin's film dramatises a real 1969 trial where the system itself became the weapon. If Exhibit A leaves you angry about justice, this channel that fury into something mythic and galvanising.

But It's Sorkin doing Sorkin—rapid-fire dialogue, speechifying, a heroic narrative arc. If that style exhausts you, this will exhaust you faster.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Exhibit A

West of Memphis2012

A three-hour deep-dive into the West Memphis Three case, where teenagers were convicted on junk evidence and a moral panic. It's Exhibit A expanded to feature length, with HBO money behind the investigation.

But Three hours is a genuine ask, and the pacing assumes you're already invested in the case. If you want something snappier, this isn't it.

Killer Ratings2019

A Ukrainian miniseries about a journalist whose TV show accidentally helps solve murders—then exploits them. It's a crazed, playful riff on how forensic evidence becomes entertainment, and how that corrupts everything.

But It's wildly tonal, mixing comedy with dark crime, and subtitled. If you want your true crime straight and grim, the genre-hopping will feel chaotic.

The Confession Tapes2017

Six cases where people confessed to crimes they didn't commit. It zooms in on the psychology of false confessions—why innocent people say they're guilty—a question Exhibit A touches on but doesn't fully explore.

But Some episodes feel incomplete; the resolutions are messier than you'd hope. It can leave you in a worse mood than when you started, without closure.