Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The New York Times Presents: To Live And Die In Alabama’ On Hulu, A Devastating Examination Of The Execution of Nathaniel Woods

The New York Times Presents has covered a plethora of topics, from Britney Spears’s conservatorship and Janet Jackson’s shaming post-Super Bowl to the rise of the Juul and the murder of Breonna Taylor. The FX/Hulu collaboration hasn’t shied away from any difficult subject matter yet, and in To Live And Die In Alabama, now streaming on Hulu, the series examines the capital murder conviction of Nathaniel Woods, a man who was sentenced to death despite never having pulled the trigger.  

THE NEW YORK TIMES PRESENTS: TO LIVE AND DIE IN ALABAMA: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: On June 17, 2004, a shootout at an Alabama drug house killed three Birmingham police officers. On March 5, 2020, Nathaniel Woods was executed for their murders. He never pulled the trigger. He was convicted of capital murder despite a non-unanimous jury and despite pleas from the actual gunman – Kerry Spencer – and many others to reconsider his sentencing. We begin with frantic calls from pro bono attorney Lauren Faraino as she tries to save Woods’s life in the moments before his execution, and at the very last minute, he’s granted a stay. Unfortunately, however, this victory is short-lived, and Woods – even with a mountain of evidence proving he was not responsible for the deaths of these cops – is executed.

With the help of Woods’s sisters, Pamela and Heavenly, as well as his father, friends, and other family members, we begin to get a full picture of who he was and the kind of life he lived. It only makes the injustice more devastating. We hear from family members of the police officers who were killed, some who believe Wood should walk free, while another – the daughter of one of the officers – thinks he got what he deserved. Jurors from the trial also weigh in, as well as lawyers and other prominent figures from the case, and there are even clips from Woods himself. To Live And Die in Alabama offers a devastating examination of the unjust incarceration and execution of a young Black man in a state still dominated by a deeply racist system.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: To Live and Die in Alabama will likely bring to mind other installments of The New York Times Presents like The Killing of Breonna Taylor and Move Fast & Vape Things, as well as other documentaries like The State of Texas vs. Melissa and Flint Town.

Memorable Dialogue: Though Nathaniel Woods did not offer any last words on the record before he was executed, his father emotionally recalls their final conversation, during which he told him he would be leaving with his family the next time he excited the prison, even if they couldn’t see him: “I’m gonna be a free man when I come out this gate.” It’s enough to break your heart.

Sex and Skin: None.

Our Take: It only took about a minute for To Live And Die In Alabama to floor me; the opening phone conversations are absolutely gripping, bringing us to a moment that takes your breath away. This is our introduction to the case of Nathaniel Woods, a man who was executed for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The whole thing is absolutely baffling, and the documentary addresses this from the start; how did a man who didn’t kill anyone get sentenced to death in Alabama? Though To Live And Die In Alabama is only a little over an hour long, it offers an incisive examination of the racist system that allowed Nate Woods to spend 14 years in prison and sentenced to death despite never having put his finger on the trigger.

The story itself is deeply compelling, but with the help of individuals like Woods’s sisters and father, To Live And Die In Alabama packs a devastating punch. We really get to understand who he was as a person, and not just the way the media portrayed him, and that’s what sets this apart from so many other documentaries. The emotion is raw and real within the first few moments of the film, and this breathtaking tension is sustained for its entire runtime. There has been an injustice here, one unforgivable in nature, and it was carried out on a national stage over 14 years.

This installment of The New York Times Presents not only hits home on an intimate level emotionally, but speaks to the need to change the larger systems that allowed such an injustice to occur at all. To Live And Die In Alabama ends feeling like a call to action; a call to exonerate Nathaniel Woods for a crime he did not commit, to change the laws that allows a judge to play God in the case of a non-unanimous jury, to confront the racist, corrupt system that caused all of this to happen in the first place. We failed Nathaniel Woods while he was still here. Changing the system that did this to him is long overdue, but documentaries like this feel like a start.

Our Call: STREAM IT. With the devastating and infuriating To Live And Die In Alabama, The New York Times Presents continues its streak of top-quality investigations into vital issues. It’s absolutely necessary viewing.

Jade Budowski is a freelance writer with a knack for ruining punchlines, hogging the mic at karaoke, and thirst-tweeting. Follow her on Twitter: @jadebudowski.

Stream The New York Times Presents on Hulu