Reviews

By Carolina Grace Littleton / Edited by Paige Chinn

Should someone’s legacy solely rely on what they say during the time of their highest tension and greatest despair? When it comes to the case of the Menendez murders, Ryan Murphy may believe that one time is all he needed to grasp the whole story.  

On Sept. 19, a new, true-crime series, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” was released on Netflix and immediately found its way to the top of Netflix’s “Most Popular” list. The riveting series, created by Ryan Murphy, reignited controversy and debate regarding the case of Jose and Kitty Menendez, who were murdered by their own sons, Erik and Lyle Menendez in 1989. 

 The two sons were found guilty and sentenced to life in prison, only for their courtroom trial recordings to be released about three years later, causing a resurrection of old debates, much like Ryan Murphy’s new television series did just a few weeks ago.  

What did Ryan Murphy Say?

“Monsters” is not the first creation of Ryan Murphy’s he’s had to be quick to defend after producing. “Monster: A Jefferey Dahmer Story” also received backlash for misrepresenting the tragic story. So, Murphy took a new approach with the Menendez story and decided to, what BBC reported, “present the murders from different perspectives as it explores what might have led the siblings to kill their parents” while also “show[ing] things from the parents’ point of view”.  

There is a lot of gray area floating around Murphy’s interpretation of the story’s events because despite it being “based on extensive research,” he is telling the story from the point of view of two people in jail that he has never talked to, along with two people who are dead whom he will never get the chance to talk to.  

If there’s one thing Murphy strived to get right in this retelling of a gruesome murder, it was perspective. Hence his attempt to get into the minds of two deceased individuals out of “obligation as [a] storyteller to also try to put in their perspective” regardless of how flawed it may be. 

After receiving backlash from viewers and case convict, Erik Menendez, for inaccurately portraying on screen what, hypothetically, could have been going on in their minds, Murphy attempted to promote himself as an advocate for justice, but not for Erik and Lyle Menendez because it’s “not his job”.  

“I believe in justice, but I don’t believe in being a part of that machine. That’s not my job. My job as an artist was to tell a perspective in a particular story. I feel I’ve done that, but I wish them well.” 

• Ryan Murphy’s quote to Variety on his role in the Menendez murder case 

Despite his statement that he “has no interest in talking to them”, Ryan Murphy takes no hesitation in deeming his creation of the new true crime series “the best thing that has happened to the Menendez brothers in 30 years”. Disregarding what other Menendez family members said in a tweet about how the show “victimized” them and the two brothers in this “grotesque shockadrama”, Murphy remained firm in his stance and belief that his show, that is being “talked about by millions of people all over the world”, is receiving only praise from viewers and advocation for the Menendez family as they finally get a trial in the court of public opinion.  

What did the Menendez Brothers Say? 

From behind iron bars and without viewing the series himself, Erik Menendez took no restraints in expressing his disdain, discomfort, and painful relationship with the “Monsters” show. 

Regardless of Murphy’s attempts to portray all perspectives of the four people involved with the killings equally and justly, the “Monsters” anthology created by him automatically villainizes the subjects that the story is based upon. In this case: the Menendez brothers.  

Before diving in too deep, I find it difficult to portray any kind of murder for any kind of reason in an unbiased lighting because, as I would hope, most people would agree, killing is wrong and immoral. However, the reintroduction of such events to the limelight of Hollywood raises many questions regarding the ethics of telling a perceived side of a story that has the potential of being biased to one side or the other, and the ethics of privacy for any and all individuals involved or affected by the events shown on screen.  

For example, Erik Menendez instantly criticized the production the day after its release claiming it was nothing more than “disheartening slander”. In his eyes, he was just made the villain in the eyes of the whole world just so someone could make profit. 

“I can only believe they were done so on purpose. It is with a heavy heart that I say, I believe Ryan Murphy cannot be this naïve and inaccurate about the facts of our lives so as to do this without bad intent.” 

-Erik Menendez on Ryan Murphy’s true intentions behind creating “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” 

Regardless of Erik’s distaste for how the show was created, he highlights how important the truth is about crime in the real world and not just on the big screen. Not to mention the prejudice views surrounding male-on-male sexual assault, which only reignited Erik’s trauma after the release of the show.  

What Do We Say? 

How do we prevent biased media? How do we recognize fact over fiction? How do we advocate for truth and justice through modes of entertainment, if that is even possible in a world of people that find that entertainment in the strangest of ways? 

In a world that craves the latest dose of drama, it’s easy to believe the story told that aids to using its theatrics to gain social approval. In the case 0f the Menendez brothers, The Wrap observed that “curious viewers found the legal proceedings” of the Menendez case “even more dramatic than the daytime dramas that typically populated the TV time slots” so why base all opinions, prejudices, and biases on a skewed retelling of a man’s perceived version of a story when the legitimate facts are right at our fingertips? 

There are always three sides to every story. There are the two sides that are directly involved in the story, and the side that decides how to tell it. Which side are you going to believe?  

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