Murder is becoming a fast growing trend for the most popular television shows and movies. When Netflix aired Making a Murderer, it created a cult-following of at-home sleuths determined to find an answer to the whodunit and why. The genre of crime-drama is increasing in viewership across the United States and a story right here from home is getting some attention.
Bergen County is getting its own homegrown crime investigation next year with the premier of the movie Wisper. While the movie is set to hit theaters in early 2018, the hype surrounding the movie has already started to grow. A long imagined suspect, Josiah Wisper, sparked a flurry of internet activity on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, showing the publics eagerness to not only embrace the film but solve the crime. While Wisper was cleared of any wrongdoing, it has been hard for the public to concede that Wisper wasn’t the perpetrator of the murders, leaving many members of the community still suspecting Wisper of the crime.
The film focuses on the loss of Wisper’s family in 2016, when they were murdered while living in Fort Lee. The unsolved murders remain a cold case to this day and the film focuses on the unraveling of the events both before and after the incident. The film which is being dubbed a crime-thriller, interweaves some of Josiah Wisper’s own footage, which is one of the most important pieces of evidence in finding the killer. His personal footage is what makes the movie both compelling and hard not to get involved in.
Wisper’s loss was large, with his wife and three children murdered. The movie takes a first person approach and follows Josiah Wisper on a quest to prove who killed his family. Filming large amounts of video footage on his own in an attempt to find clues on the killings, Wisper will leave you feeling uncertain about many of the key players in the investigation.
Bergen County is featured in much of the film with many scenes being filmed in many of Bergen’s towns and streets. The gritty shooting environment provides an authentic feel to the viewer and offers first hand insight into the occurrences surrounding the event.
Josiah Wisper has started a Facebook Page called the Wisper Project, and is dedicated to uncovering clues, facts and information surrounding the murder of his family. The page is home to comments and posts not only vindicating Wisper, but with information people hope will point to a killer. Josiah Wisper has kept his posts about the movie to a minimum with a single photo of him visiting the graves of his family generating thousands of likes, comments, and shares on social media.
Wisper is wrapping up its post-production currently, and will be released in the coming months. The film is sure to reignite the controversy surrounding the murders, and is expected to draw large number s from local citizens for whom the murders hit a little too close to home.
Screenings of the movie have yet to be publicized.
