So here we go, despite my friends’ caveats’.
- “intent matters but is hard to discern in art. One can’t always trust even what the artist says about their work, let alone any critic.”
- “all reviews are subjective and tell me more about the rater than they do the book.”
The Fall is a PRIME series (2013 – 2016) written and directed by Allan Cubitt, a former high school English and Drama teacher. I love this show! Five stars. Is the “Demon seed” a real thing? Let’s get into it.
The Fall
according to Cubitt represents that Biblical fall from grace that we mortals all experience. The story’s inspiration came from a real life serial killer who murdered his victims … how and why? Cubitt wondered. Don’t we all? I do. Because that gets to the heart of what makes people tick. Abnormal Psychology it’s called. Or is it? Was Freud right? Or are the Humanists?
The Story
unfolds in real time. From the jump we know the crime and who done it. Furthermore, we meet the detective who’s going to solve it. She’s that Strong Female Lead. In fact, we meet her first and the scene foreshadows what the real mystery is – Who are we?
So we know the crime(s), the killer, and hero within minutes. Yet the series goes on for three seasons. The music is perfect. The acting superb. The setting is contemporary Belfast, Ireland. Lots of rain, of course. We’ve got smart phones, the Internet, and so on. It is so intense.
According to Cubitt, again, he wanted to explore the hatred of women; and why they are always victims of crimes.
However, I see something more.
The Characters
are complex. I see, not only woman as victim, but man as well. The super-detective, Stella Gibson, appears to hate men. She has contempt for them and uses them for her own pleasure and sexual satisfaction. Is she an archetype? No, she is far more complex. Was this Cubitt’s intent? I don’t know. At the same time, we eventually learn she has “Daddy issues”, as does the killer’s six-year old daughter. As do many of the women. Is everyone a victim?
Why is the killer, Paul Spector, so attractive to women even when they know he gets off on torturing and murdering women? Albeit, a certain “type” of woman. This show asks a lot of questions without answers. That’s up to you, the watcher.
Stella, in a way, tortures and murders men. But doesn’t kill them. It’s not the same. Right? Of course not. She’s good and great at her job – running the show and catching the bad men.
Conclusion
is often, should you invest your time and watch this show? Not if you’re squeamish and like happy endings. If you’re curious about human nature? Yes.
“What is sex? A need or desire?” Is the “Demon seed” a real thing? Do we come away with an answer? No. Stella wants answers. Paul explains it all to her. Is he right?
Who do you have more sympathy for? the killer or the police? Are we all victims? What the hell is going on?
Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Following up, having watched The Fall twice and thought more about it. While I think the characters are not archetypical stereotypes – the story is an old one. That being “enemies to lovers”; “forbidden love”; “the law of attraction” – like that.
Stella and Paul are intensely attracted to one another. Paul sees it and hates it, Stella denies it. Because … of the daddy thing? Or is it even more primeval?