'Monster: The Ed Gein' Story Is Where Ryan Murphy's Franchise Finally Jumps the Shark
It's a loud but empty spectacle that tries to disguise itself as a meta-commentary on the harm of exploiting real crimes. Ironically, The Ed Gein Story is the most striking example of this exploitation.
The third season of the Monster anthology series, which is dedicated to one of the most notorious serial killers, Ed Gein, has finally arrived. However, it has disappointed even the most devoted fans of Ryan Murphy's show.
Rather than delving into the criminal's personality and the reasons behind his actions, viewers are treated to speculative fiction that romanticizes evil and hopelessly drowns in its own narrative contradictions.
Compared to previous seasons about Jeffrey Dahmer and the Menendez brothers, The Ed Gein Story feels like the franchise's weakest link.
What Is 'Monster: The Ed Gein Story' About?
The series transports us to Plainfield in the 1940s and 1950s. This town is home to the reclusive Ed Gein (Charlie Hunnam), who lives under the tyrannical care of his religious mother.
After her death, his fragile psyche finally breaks. He begins digging up graves and then commits a series of murders, creating horrific artifacts from his victims' body parts.
The plot follows his transformation into a monster, a character later cited by the creators of Psycho, The Silence of the Lambs, and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.
'The Ed Gein Story' Is the Weakest Chapter in Terms of Exploration of the Main Character
While the first two seasons attempted to understand the motivations of Dahmer and the intricacies of the Menendez family tragedy, the third season doesn't even pretend to be interested in the inner world of Ed Gein.
Led by screenwriter Ian Brennan, the creators present Gein not as a complex personality but as a myth, a figment of the collective imagination.
Rather than providing a psychological analysis, the creators treat viewers to a chaotic stream of hallucinations in which Gein flees from the ghosts of Jews, attends parties hosted by Nazi criminals, and reenacts scenes from famous horror movies.
The gaps in his biography are filled with speculation, which deprives the story of any depth and credibility.
The New Season Overly Glamorizes and Romanticizes the Image of Ed Gein
While criticizing Hollywood for romanticizing violence, the series itself falls into the same trap. Ed Gein, played by the charismatic and muscular Charlie Hunnam, is portrayed less as a repulsive maniac and more as a tragic, almost gothic hero.
Scenes of necrophilia and dismemberment are filmed with an almost playful aesthetic, and the plot centers on a toxic relationship with Adeline. According to the creators, it is Adeline who drives the innocent, quiet man to commit crimes.
This approach is speculative and cynically shifts blame from the perpetrator to those around him, creating a narrative that justifies his actions.
What Did Critics & Viewers Think of 'Monster: The Ed Gein Story'?
The Guardian critic Lucy Mangan gave The Ed Gein Story one out of five stars, and wrote:
“The Ed Gein Story feels like it is interested only in bringing an underexploited piece of true crime estate to market, and in demanding sympathy for the man behind the skin masks and boxes of carved out trophies.”
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Monster: The Ed Gein Story has 23% from critics and 54% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.
