| Producer, Director | Almudena Carracedo, Robert Bahar |
| Runtime | 102 minutes |
| Genre | Documentary |
| Narrators | Natalia de Molina, Carolina Yuste |
| Native Title | No estás sola: La lucha contra La Manada |
Documentaries on severe topics such as this one are extremely difficult to watch but can be, in a way, an outlet to get back some power in this world where violence against women is so commonplace and, sadly, so easily accepted. The documentary is a harrowing watch and can be triggering for many women considering how many women, if not most, have gone through something similar. The documentary doesn’t ease us into the shocking incident; we are directly thrown into the loop and left to stew with the uncomfortable music and a search for a bunch of perpetrators in Pamplona’s street in the midst of the huge festival.
The documentary film is really difficult to watch. As I mentioned previously, it’s really triggering. Although it’s nice to see how people come together in the wake of the crime to get justice, it’s still terrible that it even took place. The details are horrible, sad and concerning, especially when it comes to the ease with which the culprits discuss the premeditation of the crime.
But the real kicker comes with the court videos – they are infuriating. We see the police officers going through horrible evidence to find out more about the “wolf pack” and how they operate. The deeper the officers go in, the murkier and more infuriating it becomes. Honestly, the documentary made my skin itch from discomfort. The laws are the most baffling and horrible part of this whole ordeal. You’d expect the law to be on the side of the victims, but the shocking discovery leaves our mouths hanging.
The documentary does a good job of bringing it all forward – the victim blaming, the gloating of the defence and an attempt to make the masses question the victim and the media’s role in this mess that they had a hand in creating. The film makes use of actual footage and a retelling of the actual victim statements. The words, the videos and the photos are haunting and a bit nauseating and make you feel scared to live in a world where being a woman is so difficult every step of the way, especially when you are a woman who needs justice.
However, there still is hope – towards the end of a horrible trial, it’s women who stand up for each other and give our hearts hope. That even though there are horrible things in the world, there are still people who will be by our side and hold our hands. It’s inspiring and the only speck of light in this tragic and hopeless story of crime and perseverance.
You Are Not Alone – Fighting the Wolf Pack Review: Conclusion
In the end, You Are Not Alone – Fighting the Wolf Pack leaves you devastated and sad, it leaves you extremely scared as well. It goes into extreme details that shock you and make you nauseous the more you watch it, but it’s an important watch. These stories need to be told so that one day, women are not constantly looking over their shoulders and they get justice. The documentary’s story itself is so arresting and shocking that there’s not much else that the movie needs to do and that’s exactly why it works. It lets the victims tell the tales and takes a backseat so as not to take away their voices and that’s why it works well.
You Are Not Alone – Fighting the Wolf Pack is streaming on Netflix.
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One comment made me think: a young girl maintains that this is a war between generations, because the people who judge the victim are over 60. This is nonsense.
But perpetrators are of a very young generation, too!
Forty years ago, the rape was not that common, because OLDER generation had more respect for women.
40 years ago rape was not that common as a crime, because it wasn’t a crime to rape your wife for example. Marital rape was legal until 1991 in the UK. Because there was no law protecting women, they were not reporting. Rape was as common as now. In self-reporting data, there is no change in numbers, is as common now as it was 40 or even 60 years ago. There has never been repsect for women, women has always been there to serve men, their needs and viewd as an object. This till has not changed.
With regards the age of the perpetrators, what she meant is that we still having secual violence because the tool that is meant to make perpetrators accountable is made of 60 yo white men who still think rape is fine. Thus, enabling this crime to still be prevalent in the younger society.