Be Reel Blog- Mindhunter- A Dive Into The Criminal Mind

Mindhunter, created by Joe Penhall, is a captivating thriller set in the 1970s. It follows two FBI agents who lead an investigation into the minds of criminals who have committed extremely heinous crimes. The first episode follows the main character, Holden, in a confrontation with a suicidal man who was seemingly "normal" before. Even through all of Holden's efforts, the man kills himself. This leads to his interest in minds of mentally ill criminals and our story is born. In the second episode veteran Bill Tench is introduced. He was active in the FBI a long time and now teaches police around the US about criminal psychology and how to expect what serial killers will do. He asks Holden to join him in teaching and Holden jumps at this opportunity. While traveling and teaching Holden starts stopping in prisons to interview serial killers to find out why they did what they did and how they're brain works. At first Bill is extremely against it but he ends up joining Holden and they make an amazing team.

The acting in this film is fantastic from everyone casted, but Jonathan Groff's performance as the awkward intelligent Holden is superb. The awkwardness he creates is so well done and nothing like the typical approach actors and directors takes to make awkward situations. The director (David Fincher director of House of Cards) also creates a certain nostalgia with 1970s era cars, music and views that people have. It certainly adds to the film and draws in an even larger audience that can relate to this era.
My only complaint about this film is definitely a subjective one but does not stop me from watching. I find that it gets a little too disturbing and descriptive sometimes when these criminals are telling the stories of the horrible messed up things. I know that this adds to the plot and the entire energy of this show but personally it just ends up disgusting me. Even the beginning part of each show where the credits are displayed flash between an audio tape and a dead woman's body. The funny thing is that this show is so well done and fantastic that I can't stop watching even though I hate those parts. I think most sane people would be disturbed by the situations these criminals describe and the director must want you to squirm in your seat and most definitely succeeds at that through not only the criminals stories but through the way they tell them and they way they calmly sit or eat while they tell Holden and Bill what they did and why.
I would give this show a Good Good rating with the objective quality being off the charts and the subjective enjoyment being pretty high up there too. The choices the director makes pull you in and won't let you leave the minds of these criminals as if you are one of the people interviewing them. I would certainly recommend the show to anyone who can handle some disturbing stories and even to someone who can't because the show would be amazing even if you mute the TV at those points.