Netflix’s latest true-crime series, Monster: The Ed Gein Story, dives deep into the psyche of the reclusive Wisconsin murderer.

The production blends fact and fiction, exploring the psychological disorders and macabre fantasies of a mass murderer and drawing viewers deep into the darkness of Ed Gein’s life.

Luxembourgish-German actress Vicky Krieps appears in several episodes as Ilse Koch, but there is no historical evidence that Gein ever harbored fantasies involving the German Nazi war criminal. Known as the “Witch of Buchenwald”, Ilse Koch lived around the same time that Gein committed his crimes, murdering victims and exhuming bodies from graves in the early 1950s.

The personality of Ed Gein: Reality and psychological darkness

Ed Gein was a reclusive farmer from Wisconsin whose crimes shocked America. Historically, two murders have been attributed to him: those of Mary Hogan and Bernice Worden. He also exhumed bodies from local cemeteries, using remains to craft macabre household objects and "trophies." His obsession with women, death, and control later inspired some of cinema’s most iconic horror characters, including those in Psycho and The Silence of the Lambs.

Strengths and weaknesses of the series

Charlie Hunnam, portraying Ed Gein, delivers a convincing performance that captures the unsettling complexity of a man consumed by deep psychological disorders, a man who ultimately never left the psychiatric institution. The cinematography is particularly effective in building psychological tension, and Vicky Krieps’ brief portrayal of Ilse Koch leaves a lasting impression.

However, the series sometimes struggles with historical accuracy, blurring the line between fact and fiction. Spreading Gein’s story across eight episodes can make the narrative feel unnecessarily prolonged, as if stretched to fit the streaming format.

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For viewers drawn to true crime mixed with psychological fiction, Monster: The Ed Gein Story offers a disturbing yet fascinating portrayal of one of America’s most infamous killers. While the murders and Gein’s gruesome practices are based on fact, many details are clearly dramatised to deepen the psychological profile, with varying degrees of success.