“The Ed Gein Story” is the most recent addition to the “Monster” series, following behind season-long miniseries about Jeffery Dahmer and The Menendez Brothers. The series works toward acting out the most shocking, true (although fictionalized), widespread criminal news throughout the years.
After the public’s reaction to “Monster: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story”, it might be thought that creators Ian Brennan and Ryan Murphy would dedicate themselves to making a comeback with “The Ed Gein Story”… but they did not.
Throughout the 10 episodes there are at least six different storylines to follow — Ed Gein, Ilse Koch, Adeline, the making of Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, Silence of the Lambs and Texas Chainsaw Massacre — and they’re all confusing. It seems as though the creators couldn’t choose what part of Ed Gein’s story to focus on, so they chose all of them, losing sight of Ed Gein himself.
In Ed Gein’s storyline, the main one, it is hard to depict what is real and what is not, similar to Todd Phillips’s 2019 film “Joker”. This can be a powerful choice in other forms of media, but when recreating the story of a real serial killer with real victims, it should not be used. While it has been said that Gein had auditory hallucinations, often tied to his obsession with his mother, it is difficult to say what those hallucinations exactly were.
It’s difficult to understand why, when telling a true story, the creators would emphasize hallucinations that are some of the hardest to detail. In practically every episode, Gein is shown to be hearing or imagining things, taking away from the verified details of his life.
One of these hallucinations is that of escaped Jewish holocaust victims, tying into the show’s portrayal of Gein’s alleged obsession with Ilse Koch. It hasn’t been proven the influence the Nazi war criminal had on Gein, if any, but the show heavily focused on it. She gets her own storyline in which she is in jail and they show her having sex with a guard.
The intercourse in this show is ridiculous— the creators are practically confessing to wanting to make serial killers sexy and appealing. There is a scene of Gein having intercourse with a dead body, but in actuality he never confessed to necrophilia. There is sexual content in almost every episode, often unhelpful in moving the plot forward.
Surprisingly, the best part of this storyline was influencer Addison Rae’s impressive performance in episode three as Evelyn Hartley. She showed the potential to become a great horror actress.
However, as much as one wants to believe that Charlie Hunnam did the best he could with this fantastical version of Ed Gein, it was hard to feel genuine fear of his character with the voice he did. In real life, Ed Gein had a deeper voice, while this character sounded like Kermit the Frog.
In somewhat good news, viewers don’t have to focus on this poor storyline too much because there are three others focusing on movies based on Gein. The decision to make the movie and the start of filming for “Psycho” is shown, which is heavily fictionalized. It also delves into the lives of creator Alfred Hitchcock and actor Anthony Perkins — adding more details that don’t have part in Ed Gein’s lifetime.
There is one moment where Perkins says, “I can’t do this” when seeing the set for the movie and all the gory details. It then transitions to Ed Gein saying, “You’re the one that can’t look away,” possibly working as a social critique from the creators in response to those who say he is glorifying killers. This response would’ve been stronger if the storyline had more truth, but it is closer to a Grimm Brothers fairy tale retelling.
Brennan and Murphy also magnified Perkin’s struggles as a closeted homosexual, almost comparing it to Ed Gein’s actions. They were really reaching for a relatable aspect of Gein, but in no world is being gay on the same level as skinning dead bodies and making furniture out of them.
Adding onto the list of unrealistic portrayals are his romantic partners Adeline Watkins and Bernice Warden. The show portrays Adeline as his girlfriend, who moved in with him, cheated on him and eventually travels to New York until she comes back — none of this is known to be true.
While the real Adeline once confessed to a relationship with him, she revoked her comment by saying their relationship, “was an exaggeration blown up out of proportion to its importance and containing untrue statements.“
As for Bernice Warden, she was Gein’s last victim, yet in the series she is portrayed as nothing more than an old, sex-crazed predator. The real Gein murdered this woman, yet he is portrayed as a victim.
The liberties this show decided to take are truly unbelievable and while to some it could engage to witness a tale that inspired some of the most famous horror films, it truly is time Ryan Murphy steps away from these true crime retellings.
