Things as they are: Everyone who commits suicide has a reason to do so. Although it may seem incomprehensible to the rest of us (not to call it another way), for those who carried it out, in principle, and leaving ill-measured fatal hot spots on the sidelines, it made all the sense in the world. He must have it to leave behind a handful of curious, morbid loved ones wondering for life about why. ‘The Girl From Plainville’ begins with the 2014 suicide of Conrad Roy III. From there the narrative is divided into two: What happened before and what happened after. The objective, as it is supposed to be in everything considered ‘true crime’, is to carry out a sensitive and more or less accurate chronicle of what happened in passing that avoids gratuitous morbidity, even if it is only for what they will say (or denounce) the ones that are still around. But in film or television, intention is not enough, neither is an interesting story, an exemplary cast or handling a series of important issues. All this must be valued. A good foundation is just a starting point, and if you want to hold the viewer for eight 45-minute episodes you have to give them more than what they can read on Wikipedia. Give life. Make it exciting or stimulating. And ‘The Girl from Plainville’ is when it focuses on the characters of Colton Ryan and Elle Fanning, who are in charge of the real differential value of a miniseries that, however, does not end up taking advantage of them. To put them in authentic value with respect to the superfluous elements that surround them. In its eagerness for a global perspective, the script ends up giving almost the same relevance to the most common elements on which it is based. That is, the miniseries treats everything and everyone almost the same, including a cast of supporting cast that for the most part, especially those related to legal issues, lack a definition that justifies their apparent relevance on screen as something more than extras. That is, by not valuing and/or taking advantage of its distinctive elements and giving everything an average value, the miniseries ends up falling into the generic. In the soft and bland. Although it may seem so (and sometimes feints with it), in reality ‘The Girl from Plainville’ is not interested in exploring the ideas, the nooks and crannies or the themes raised by the story, falling into the well-off vice of making a portrait ” Wikipedian” little provocative and lacking in depth. His narration split in two plays well at the confusion at first, but it cannot prevent the progressive loss of bellows. The curve of your interest marks a clearly downward trend. From more to less, as its most interesting elements are diluted in a narrative that gives them no outlet, and when in doubt tends towards melodrama with a tone closer to that of a tabletop TV movie. From the initial curiosity to the final indifference, being another of many of those ‘true crimes’ that are not capable of overcoming reality.
By Juan Pairet Iglesias
@Wanchopex
