Long Night's Journey Into Day.

Long Night's Journey Into Day * Directed by Frances Reid and Deborah Hoffman * HBO * Premieres June 11, 8 P.M. Eastern/Pacific (check local listings)

Partners in filmmaking and life, Frances Reid and Deborah Hoffmann wisely begin their Oscar-nominated documentary (and Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner) Long Night's Journey Into Day by focusing on the case of American Amy Biehl. Biehl was a young white anti-apartheid activist killed during an uprising in a black South African township, and as the film begins, her convicted killers are seeking amnesty through South Africa's Troth and Reconciliation Commission. The TRC has the power to forgive apartheid-related crimes--as long as those seeking amnesty confess all their crimes and express some regret.

It's smart to start with Biehl's case, because not only did Biehl's murder capture America's attention, it also made headlines around the world and led the major media to focus on the tragedy and injustice of apartheid. But this documentary shows that Biehl's killers aren't quite the hideous creatures you would have conjured up. "Killing someone like her exposed both our anger and the conditions under which we lived," one of her murderers calmly reflects, "because if we had been living reasonably, we would not have killed her."

Long Night's Journey Into Day focuses on only four cases brought before the TRC (in all, 7,000 people applied for amnesty--80% of whom, surprisingly, are black), but these four cases are a revealing microcosm of what life was like under apartheid. They involve Biehl's attackers; a white police officer and a black undercover agent, both of whom killed anti-apartheid activists in the line of duty; and an African National Congress guerrilla who bombed a cafe.

Despite the enormity of the crimes, the TRC hearings Reid and Hoffmann document show oppression on a human scale--through mothers, fathers, sisters, cousins, and their memories of the dead. While the guilty get a chance to clear their consciences, the victims' families finally have the opportunity to hear the truth and details behind their loved one's deaths. As TRC member Mary Burton shares, "Knowing more can help, even if it is painful and traumatic."

No scene in the film is more traumatic than that of a group of mothers viewing police video of their sons' crumpled and lifeless bodies. When the women finally get to talk to the black police officer who took part in the killings, it's clear that black-against-black violence is particularly hard for the mothers to accept. One asks him emotionally, "How do you feel about selling out your own blood instead of defending it?"--not understanding how apartheid turned him into a government-sanctioned killer.

Maybe after watching TRC sessions beamed daily into their TVs, survivors--and all South Africans--have a better perception of the events of the recent past. Perhaps Archbishop Desmond Tutu expresses the best understanding of the TRC's goals: "This process is not about pillowing anybody. It's not about prosecuting anybody. It's ultimately getting the truth so that we can help to heal and also so that we will know what to avoid in the future." Long Night's Journey Into Day is a beautiful document of that healing process.

Marcus contributes to indieWIRE.com and Frontiers.

Find more on Deborah Hoffman, Frances Reid, and Long Night's Journey Into Day at www.advocate.com