“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story”, created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan for Netflix, is a thrilling and extremely entertaining show, if a complete mischaracterization of the Menendez brothers’ emotional state and relationship to each other.
My largest problem with the show is not necessarily its attempt to portray all aspects of the trial or the representation of the brothers’ wealth, but the fact that it is a follow-up to the show “Dahmer” in a series called “Monsters.” When the first impression of the brothers and their story is a follow-up to a series on a cannibal and serial murderer, the case has been left with zero room for sympathy or condolence.
The first few episodes begin by portraying an emotionless and vengeful plan of murder by the brothers, along with a not entirely abusive Kitty and Jose Menendez. In fact, it is not until about episode five to six that we start to see a humanized side of the boys at all.
The show does a great job at slowly unraveling the cycle of abuse through the Menendez family, beginning with Jose’s father and the pressure to consistently live up to the Menendez name. Jose grew up with a similarly high pressure household and began growing his obsession with ancient Rome and making men “tougher.” This is where more graphic and dark truths of Jose’s relationship with his sons is revealed. These moments create a newfound understanding of why the boys act the way they do, and explains most of their faults. Still, the balance between the boy’s horrific realities and the arrogant portrayal of their character leaves viewers with an intense moral conflict.
Specifically, the depiction of Lyle Menendez left very little room for understanding or believability. Lyle comes across as privileged, spoiled and unremorseful considering the severity of his crimes. Despite the emotions evoked from the boy’s confessions, it’s as though Murphy did all he could to create an unlikable character in Lyle.
Although many characters felt overdramatized and emotionless, the music score, costume choices and overall vibe of the 90’s saved the show, making it authentic and easily agreeable. The contrast of wealth and luxury to cycling abuse and violence make the show eerie and unsettling to the audience. But it can be argued that the point of the show is not to exaggerate or side with either view of the trial, but to create the uneasy living environment of Lyle and Erik in the hopes of understanding the struggle and internal conflict the boys endured.
The show as a whole is convincing in its portrayal and undoubtedly amusing, but a few of the artistic choices appear to be far-fetched and insensitive. One of which was the somewhat incestual relationship between Lyle and Erik, which has received a lot of criticism from recent viewers. It goes without saying that Murphy and Brennan attempted to convey every possible theory and speculation of the brothers’ case; however, to me, it made the show harder to follow and less concise in its messaging.
Overall, I highly recommend watching “Monsters” if you’re interested in a glimpse of the Menendez brothers’ case or want a thrilling but relatively fast-paced show. However, I would not base my entire knowledge or personal stance on their trial off of a nine-episode misrepresentation.
