Mindhunter
Overview
Mindhunter is a 2017 psychological crime thriller television series created by Joe Penhall for Netflix, based on the 1995 true-crime book Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit by John E. Douglas and Mark Olshaker. The series is set in the late 1970s and early 1980s, at the beginning of the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit. The series follows two FBI agents, Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) and Bill Tench (Holt McCallany), who travel the country interviewing imprisoned serial killers to understand their psychology. They hope to use this knowledge to solve ongoing cases. They are assisted by Wendy Carr (Anna Torv), a psychologist who brings academic rigor to their work. The series is a slow-burn, intellectual thriller. It is not a violent or action-packed show. Instead, it is a series of intense, uncomfortable conversations between the agents and the killers. The killers are portrayed as complex, disturbed individuals, not as monsters. The series features interviews with real-life serial killers, including Ed Kemper (Cameron Britton), who is calm, articulate, and terrifying; Jerry Brudos (Happy Anderson), who has a foot fetish; and Charles Manson (Damon Herriman), who is charismatic and manipulative. The series explores the psychological toll that this work takes on the agents. Holden becomes increasingly arrogant and reckless, and he suffers a panic attack. Bill's family is torn apart by his work. The series was critically acclaimed, but it was canceled after two seasons due to the high cost of production and the demanding shooting schedule. Netflix has hinted that a third season is possible, but it has not been confirmed. Mindhunter is a brilliant, disturbing, and essential series for fans of true crime and psychological thrillers.
