By Audrey Werth/ tr news editor
A title as ridiculous as Finders Keepers left little faith in the reputability of a documentary about two men fighting for custody over a severed leg.
The conflict alone seems too ludicrous to have arisen naturally. Throughout the documentary, the details that created this dispute only prove more unbelievable.
North Carolina native John Wood lost his leg while co-piloting a family plane in 2004. The plane crashed, killing his father. He, his nephew and brother-in-law were injured.
Wood asked for the hospital to give him his leg bones back so that one day he could be buried as a whole man. The hospital agreed. But when a man showed up at his home to give him his leg, the muscle and flesh had not been removed.
Later, when John loses his house, he puts his belongings into a storage unit but then fails to make payments on it.
Shannon Whisnant eventually buys a grill from the storage unit at auction only later to discover the leg inside.
What ensues is a surprising story about one man trying to capitalize on another man’s leg while the other just wants to retrieve the limb and move on.
The two men end up on multiple news outlets internationally including a trip to Germany for a talk show.
Finders Keepers brings together these moments in the news along with personal interviews with family members.
Wood’s mother, sister and brother-in-law recount how the publicity and John’s struggle with drug addiction compounded to create a rift in the family, eventually causing John to lose their trust.
The film is shockingly relatable and enjoyable both as a look into the lives of two North Carolina families and as a piece of entertainment detailing a story almost too absurd to be true.
