Mindhunter review

By: L. Janér

“Mindhunter”, Netflix’s new crime-thriller TV show, follows two FBI agents Holden Ford and Bill Tench as they push the boundaries of the understanding and knowledge of the criminal mind. Set in the 70’s, a time when investigating the motives behind crimes was a superficial and rudimentary process, “Mindhunter” tells the story of how Agent Ford and Agent Tench develop a new method to understand the ‘why’ behind bizarre crimes and deviant behaviour, by interviewing incarcerated serial killers, thus originating an innovative technique in criminal profiling. They interact first hand with psychopaths, sociopaths and lunatics in an attempt to decipher what it is that makes these men who they are. The series is based upon a non-fiction book by former FBI agent John Douglas, “Mind Hunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit”, in which he recounts his experiences working with psychological profiling with the FBI.

Mind hunter is not an adrenaline-fueled, fast-paced thriller, and it starts relatively slow. Yet the story-line, however steady, is not at all conventional but extremely captivating. It is an extremely intelligent and superbly directed series, and it gets more and more compelling as the plot develops. The intricate, deep look into the investigation of the sociopathic mind makes for a fascinating and gripping story, because labelling a murderer as ‘crazy’ is quite simple, but what is ‘crazy’? What makes ‘crazy’? What could possibly happen inside a human being’s mind that would lead them to commit such atrocious crimes? Perhaps one of the most intriguing aspects in ‘Mindhunters’ is that it is based on real experiences; the serial killers portrayed in the show existed and the main characters were inspired by real FBI agents, which adds a certain depth and veracity to the story. The cast is another feature which I found completely astonishing; small roles such as the serial killers and characters involved in certain investigations, which are seemingly less important, are played by actors so convincing it left me completely astounded. The performances in “Mindhunter” are completely breath taking, which only adds to the series’ long list of spectacular qualities.

Overall it is an extremely entertaining and ingenious TV show, which I finished watching in a span of one week, and highly recommend for anyone looking for a genuinely clever and riveting series to binge-watch.