This is the next installment of Ryan Murphy's series on murderers after the Jeffrey Dahmer and Menendez brothers series. The 8-episode series tells the story of famed murderer and grave robber Ed Gein, played by Charlie Hunnam of Sons of Anarchy fame.
I was interested in seeing this because I had read about Ed Gein in the past and I generally love watching anything true crime-related. Gein is somewhat well-known, but definitely not a household name like Dahmer, Menendez, Bundy, Manson, etc. Nonetheless, Ed Gein was the inspiration for Psycho and aspects of his crimes influenced Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Silence of the Lambs.
So far I'm only four episodes in and Murphy has taken a different approach with multiple different storylines that take place in different times. There is a storyline about Alfred Hitchcock making Psycho interwoven with Ed Gein's story that later gives way to the making of Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I assume Silence of the Lambs will end up in there at some point.
One thing I think is interesting about this series, and not really in a good way, is that Murphy takes much more liberty about creating certain events or aspects of Gein's life and particularly the inclusion of events and other things that started as rumors after Gein was arrested and were later debunked. For example, Gein's relationship with Adeline Walker was wholly fabricated by Walker, and when pressed about her claims by authorities, she recanted. There is also no evidence Gein had anything to do with his brother's death. I also know that later, in an episode I have not watched yet, Gein apparently works with the FBI to help catch Ted Bundy. The FBI issued a statement saying this did not happen.
True to form, Murphy also had to slip some gay stuff into the series by including a storyline about Anthony Perkins' relationship with Tab Hunter and alleged struggles with homosexuality. Murphy includes scenes and claims of Perkins routinely vomiting after sex. This was a one-off claim made in a book about Perkins, and was widely derided as a flagrant lie by people who knew Perkins, including people he was known to have had intimate relations with.
The series is entertaining, for sure, but it seems much more broadly fictional than Dahmer or Menendez. I think it helps to know a little about Gein and the timeline of his crimes before starting the series so you know where you are chronologically in his story. The first four episodes are presented as if it is a relatively short period of time, when in reality these four episodes span more than 13 years of Gein's life.
I was interested in seeing this because I had read about Ed Gein in the past and I generally love watching anything true crime-related. Gein is somewhat well-known, but definitely not a household name like Dahmer, Menendez, Bundy, Manson, etc. Nonetheless, Ed Gein was the inspiration for Psycho and aspects of his crimes influenced Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Silence of the Lambs.
So far I'm only four episodes in and Murphy has taken a different approach with multiple different storylines that take place in different times. There is a storyline about Alfred Hitchcock making Psycho interwoven with Ed Gein's story that later gives way to the making of Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I assume Silence of the Lambs will end up in there at some point.
One thing I think is interesting about this series, and not really in a good way, is that Murphy takes much more liberty about creating certain events or aspects of Gein's life and particularly the inclusion of events and other things that started as rumors after Gein was arrested and were later debunked. For example, Gein's relationship with Adeline Walker was wholly fabricated by Walker, and when pressed about her claims by authorities, she recanted. There is also no evidence Gein had anything to do with his brother's death. I also know that later, in an episode I have not watched yet, Gein apparently works with the FBI to help catch Ted Bundy. The FBI issued a statement saying this did not happen.
True to form, Murphy also had to slip some gay stuff into the series by including a storyline about Anthony Perkins' relationship with Tab Hunter and alleged struggles with homosexuality. Murphy includes scenes and claims of Perkins routinely vomiting after sex. This was a one-off claim made in a book about Perkins, and was widely derided as a flagrant lie by people who knew Perkins, including people he was known to have had intimate relations with.
The series is entertaining, for sure, but it seems much more broadly fictional than Dahmer or Menendez. I think it helps to know a little about Gein and the timeline of his crimes before starting the series so you know where you are chronologically in his story. The first four episodes are presented as if it is a relatively short period of time, when in reality these four episodes span more than 13 years of Gein's life.
