I Still Can’t Believe This Brutal Netflix Original That Gave Me Nightmares Was Based on a True Story

I've always had a complicated relationship with true crime content. It's a genre that has been difficult for me to watch, yet at the same time I do acknowledge that it's very fascinating. These stories explore the darker aspects of human nature and focus on the importance of justice and closure for victims' families or survivors themselves.

True crime is basically a horror based on true events. And as much as I love horror, I have to say that true crime is way more terrifying. That's why when Netflix 's Unbelievable came out back in 2019, I knew I had to watch it, but I also realized that it'll leave me hanging for dear life. And it did.

Unbelievable: Excellent Acting to an Already Heart-Wrenching Story

Unbelievable follows a survivor, Marie Adler (Kaitlyn Dever) whose harrowing assault case is initially dismissed as a lie. Two determined female detectives work tirelessly to uncover a pattern of attacks that would prove her truth.

The story was based on T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong's Pulitzer-winning article that meticulously documented how law enforcement's initial skepticism and mishandling of Marie's case allowed a serial predator to continue his attacks unchecked for years.

I like that instead of sensationalizing the violence or exploiting trauma for entertainment, the series focused more on the investigation and more importantly, the human impact of these crimes.

Toni Collette and Merritt Wever absolutely crush it as Detectives Grace Rasmussen and Karen Duvall. It takes a lot of guts to take on a role so serious and important, and they both nailed it so carefully and compassionately.

But it's Kaitlyn Dever who really breaks your heart as Marie. Her portrayal of isolation and struggle to be believed is just devastating to watch.

Unbelievable Helped Real-Life Marie to Get Some Closure

And as I've mentioned earlier, the true crime genre can be controversial when done without a second though. Unbelievable is a completely different story though. The series is aware of the responsibility it carries in telling the story.

Ken Armstrong shared some of Maria's thoughts on X's thread with her permission. He said:

22/ And watching the last episode, watching the re-creation of the Colorado detectives closing in, provided Marie something she didn’t expect. “Seeing him get put away, that was closure for me,” she said.

— Ken Armstrong (@bykenarmstrong) September 16, 2019

It's honestly so heartening to know that the real Marie found some closure in how her story was portrayed.

Unbelievable is a great example of true crime done right. You can find it on Netflix right now. It's slow, frustrating, and sometimes feels hopeless without being exploitative.