Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story is a disturbingly weak watch for true-crime enthusiasts

📺🪓 Buckle up, folks, because this one’s a doozy — and make sure you don’t eat anything before watching. Ryan Murphy’s true-crime anthology is back with its latest installment: Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, and this time, the show spotlights its very first female killer and takes “female rage” to new heights.

The plot: The series is based on the brutal 1892 axe murders of Andrew and Abby Borden — played by Charlie Hunnam and Rebecca Hall. Ella Beatty stars as Lizzie Borden, who finds herself trapped in her stepmother’s abuse and her father’s indifference. She is then thrust into a world of desire, violence, and revenge by her new maid, Maggie (Vicky Krieps). The two bond through their mutual eccentricity, setting the stage for a gruesome chain of events that would see Lizzie turn into an axe-wielding daughter.

What we liked: The performances were the show’s standout feature across the board, from Beatty’s chilling portrayal of Lizzie’s descent into madness to Krieps’s calculated Maggie — a character we disliked from the get-go, which is arguably a testament to Krieps’s skill. Hunnam also brings great nuance to his role as Andrew following his acclaimed portrayal of Ed Gein in Monster’s previous installment.

What we didn’t like: The show confuses shock value with storytelling. It launches straight into graphic violence from the get-go, with gory, painstaking details appearing in almost every episode. It also featured a sexual assault scene that was not disclosed in trigger warnings beforehand.

The tone and dialogue were also bizarrely cartoonish at times, an opinion shared by many, with words like “pawfagged” and “flapdoodle” making the series feel as though it’s parodying its own depravity. Even the soundtrack felt disconnected from what was happening on screen, making an already chaotic experience even more jarring. Then there’s Maggie and Lizzie’s relationship, easily one of the most disturbing elements of the series, which quickly takes on a deeply predatory quality.

The verdict: Buried underneath all the gore and the weak dialogue is the fascinating question of whether monsters are made or born, as the series examines how abuse, trauma, and manipulation can turn someone into a villain. Unfortunately, that idea gets buried underneath the show’s shortcomings. The show is also difficult to sit through at times, especially on a full stomach.

WHERE TO WATCH- You can stream Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story on Netflix. Check out the trailer on YouTube (watch, runtime: 2:13).