The family bond between Betty Anne Waters (Swank) and her brother Kenny (Rockwell) is stronger than simple blood or DNA testing. But DNA testing does weigh into their story here in Conviction, where Betty Anne pursues a law degree, the Innocence Project, and the truth as she believes it in the pursuit of Kenny's freedom after he is locked up on charges of murder. Betty Anne longs for her brother to be freed, but will her sacrifices matter when it comes to Kenny's life?

Tony Goldwyn (currently onscreen in The Mechanic) directs this biopic that seems to be a New England take on Erin Brokavich. The Blu-ray from Fox Searchlight allows us to see and hear from the real Betty Anne Waters, and Goldwyn, but the story depicted by Goldwyn with Swank and Rockwell's hard work is engrossing enough, even if you never heard of the real story or didn't get any background. It's inspiring, and troubling, and the grittiness of the story only serves to make this a story of terror and pain, as the Waters find out what it means to be facing the forces of justice and truth, even when they're not the same thing.

I'm not sure that Swank or Rockwell actually make us care as much as the outrageous force of the legal system does. Rockwell's Kenny is a ne'er-do-well who we probably don't like much, but that doesn't make it any less harmful that what happens to Kenny is a tragedy. There's something about Betty Anne's refusal to give up, back down, or let go that makes us like the idea even if we can't quite get behind the characters. And there's plenty of Biblical precedent there.

I couldn't help but think that God loves us no matter what, and that God would do anything to see us free from the things which imprison us. It doesn't matter whether Kenny is guilty or not to Betty Anne's insistent and dogged pursuit of his freedom. He's family and she has to do everything she can to help. We were out-and-out guilty, and we deserved everything we were lined up to get, and Jesus still died on the cross for us. Sure, this one is made into a movie so we have an inkling (a gut feeling?) that Kenny is innocent, and that to a degree at least, Betty Anne's sacrifice will be "worth it." But we don't doubt she would've pursued truth, and followed love, and sacrificed everything.

Just like God.