'Murder on Middle Beach': How did making the docu affect Madison Hamburg? Here's a look at the trauma he endured
HBO's four-part docuseries, 'Murder on Middle Beach', delves into the gruesome murder of Barbara Hamburg, a 48-year-old woman, who was found bludgeoned to death outside her home on Middle Beach Road. Directed by Barbara's son, Madison Hamburg, the docuseries is a chronicle of Madison's return to his home as he is determined to understand the life of the mother he had lost and to uncover the truth about her death. The family's troubled history is explored and Madison questions whether learning the truth will provide closure or just more grief.
In the first episode of the miniseries, we see Madison explore the possibility of his father, Jeffrey Hamburg -- Barbara's ex-husband -- being a potential suspect for the murder. In the second episode, Madison learns about his mother's alcoholism and her involvement in the pyramid scheme known as Gifting Tables, for which her aunt, Jill Platt was convicted after Barbara was killed. In the third episode, he is forced to consider more of his family members as suspects: his sister, Ali Hamburg, and his mother's sister, Conway Beach.
While the camera was focused on Madison's family for the first three episodes, the finale for 'Murder on Middle Beach' features mostly Madison as he continues to secretly record his father as he talks to him about his mother. He learns that his father was suspected to be a part of a money-laundering scheme and after their divorce, Barbara had gathered many documents that showed that Jeffrey was allegedly part of many shell companies in different countries. However, when his father realizes that he is being recorded, he abruptly ends the call. Madison wonders whether he would continue his relationship with his father if it weren't for the documentary and painfully admits that he would.
The final episode is a glaring look at the trauma that Madison would have had to endure as a son, while Madison the filmmaker continued filming his relatives, and Madison the investigator continued to piece together clues about what happened to his mother. During a vigil for his mother, Madison admits that losing his mother made him lose the will to live and that finding her killer and making the documentary was how he kept himself alive. He tearfully tells her that she no longer needs to worry about him and that he has realized that he does not need to accept the world he was running from.
Fans of the series may recall that Madison had led a troubled life even before his mother's death, as had his sister. Madison had formerly been a drug addict. It is possible that their parents' marriage would have had a severe impact on them. We know that it did affect Ali adversely. While Madison may not have determined who the killer is, 'Murder on Middle Beach' serves as a testament to the love he has for his mother, and the impact that she had on him.
'Murder on Middle Beach' airs on HBO on Sunday nights at 10/9c. The series finale airs on Sunday, December 6.