Netflix – The streamer has quietly added “Untold: Crime in Hawthorne Hill” to its catalogue, turning a prestigious equestrian arena into the stage for one of the franchise’s darkest true-crime chapters.
- In short: Olympic coach Michael Barisone’s feud with student Lauren Kanarek erupts into a shocking shooting now dissected on screen.
From Dressage Prestige to 911 Panic
Directed by Grace McNally, the film reconstructs the breakdown of a mentor-protégé bond inside a New Jersey training farm, charting every 911 call, restraining order, and courtroom twist. Early reviews praise its “thriller pacing” and deft use of depositions, according to Variety.
Instead of glamorous medals, viewers witness how simmering paranoia can turn a multimillion-dollar sport into a crime scene.
“The real center of the narrative is the collapse of a professional relationship and how resentment, paranoia, and conflict spiraled into a criminal case.”
Why This Case Resonates Beyond the Equestrian World
True-crime remains Netflix’s most-watched non-fiction genre—36 of the platform’s Top 100 documentaries in 2025 focused on real crimes. UNTOLD capitalizes on that appetite, following hits like “Malice at the Palace” and “The Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist.”
By spotlighting an elite sport rarely linked to violence, “Crime in Hawthorne Hill” widens the franchise’s reach and underscores rising concerns over mental-health pressures in high-performance environments.
What do you think? Will this darker turn keep UNTOLD on your radar? For more gripping film coverage, browse our CineFoco section.