Netflix is a giant film and series streaming company with millions of subscribers all over the world. Everyone who doesn’t even have a subscription knows about Netflix and knows that Netflix has changed entertainment over the years. By releasing a whole season at once of documentaries, crime series on Netflix and many other categories, they started the culture of binge-watching, once you start to binge-watch, there is no going back.
There are many theories about how Netflix has affected mental health and how it is the main reason for procrastination among people. Despite all that, we all have to admit that Netflix has totally changed the entertainment industry and we cannot imagine our lives without it. Over the years we saw so many Netflix originals which broke records. Even actors shifted from cinema and TV to Netflix due to the bold content Netflix offers. There are fewer limitations on entertainment when it comes to Netflix.
The early Netflix originals
Netflix made people crazy with their thrillers, the seasons full of suspense. Every episode of those seasons gives the viewers an adrenaline rush. For example, Narcos, Squid Games, 13 reasons why, and Mind Hunter. These were the series people got hooked with, the amazing thrillers with ultimate suspense.
Then there are the dark and eerie series like Dark, Stranger Things, Haunting of Hill House, etc. these series were mostly fiction and a lot of thrill. For some people these series were very disturbing, not everyone can watch dark and eerie series like these. These kinds of series do affect your mind and mental health, they create a certain unease and restlessness in the mind.
What’s new on Netflix?
So horror, mystery, and thrill are old things on Netflix now. Now there is a new wave of Crime Series on Netflix based on original criminal cases. There are documentaries and dramatic Netflix series on criminals and how they committed crimes. The most trending series right now is Dahmer.
Monster: The Jeffery Dahmer Story
A terrifying autobiographical crime drama series called Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is available on Netflix. The show provides viewers with an inside look at Jeffrey Dahmer’s mind while also detailing the horrific crimes he committed from 1978 to 1991. It is a real case of a white man who killed over 17 boys in ten years. The series cast Evan Peters as Jeffery Dahmer in the lead role. The show revolved around the killer and his disturbing backstory.
It also highlighted the incompetency and the negligence of the police in this matter that for over a decade he continued his killing streak without any fear of being caught. The show throws light on racism in the past and also cannibalism. There were a few things added in the show which did not actually happen for dramatic effect.
But what is unethical in this?
There was a lot of criticism from the victims’ families as they accused Netflix of seeking permission from the families before filming and portrayed the cases in a very insensitive manner. They said that they have already been through a very hard time and the series again ripped that band-aid off and not even in the right way. Showing the killer as the main character and showing his backstory as a justification for his acts was highly criticized by the families of the victims.
Conversation with a killer: The Jeffery Dahmer Tapes
There is not just the dramatic version of the case but the actual tapes of the confession of the killer Jeffery Dahmer are also on Netflix. In the tapes, he is confessing to each crime without any regret or sorrow. He wasn’t even feeling any guilt about what he did. Instead, he told his killer and described how he killed the boys. Now, the tapes can also be very disturbing to listen to, especially for the families of the victims. And it can have a very negative effect on people’s minds.
But what’s actually wrong?
Dahmer became the most trending show when it was released. People loved the acting and the performance by Evan Peters as a psycho serial killer. But the question is, why make the shows based on the life of killers? Why is there a need to show them as the main character and also showcase their backstory? Filming shows on killers and showing their stories somehow make them a hero.
Now, this might not be in everyone’s case, but people do idealize a good character with good acting. They get inspired and might develop some of the traits of the killers. It was Halloween eve last month and there were these posts all over social media to not dress up as Dahmer on Halloween. As I said, people get inspired by the characters.
Other Crime Series on Netflix
And Dahmer is just one series, Netflix is flooded with murder cases and criminal biographies, and documentaries. There are also the tapes of the killer John Wayne Gacy and Ted Bundy. There are several Indian criminal series on Netflix based on real crimes. The most prominent one was Dehli Crime, which was based on the Nirbhaya Case that happened in India in which a girl was raped on a moving bus.
It was a spine-chilling series that give goosebumps to the viewers. But the difference between Dehli Crime and Dahmer series is that Dehli Crime shows the struggle of the police in catching the criminals. They did not glorify the criminal. But also there are some other shows like Indian predator, documentaries based on criminals. Again showing the backstories of criminals and killers.
The psychological effect of such series
There are two psychological aspects regarding this series. The makers give the reason to show the backstory of the killers that there are always some social and psychological factors behind such acts. And it is important for people to know those factors. They say that they show such things for awareness purposes, that broken families and bad traumatizing childhood can result in violence.
But the other aspect is, portraying killers as main characters, showing their back story can justify their heinous acts in many ways. Some people can start sympathizing with them and can develop a soft corner in their hearts for the killers. Or in the worst case, they can also start following their actions. Human psychology is complicated and these kinds of series can affect the minds of people in many ways that we can’t even imagine.
