{"id":92992,"date":"2022-10-10T18:37:16","date_gmt":"2022-10-10T18:37:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/what-it-got-wrong-and-what-friend-of-the-family-got-right\/"},"modified":"2022-10-10T18:37:16","modified_gmt":"2022-10-10T18:37:16","slug":"what-it-got-wrong-and-what-friend-of-the-family-got-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/what-it-got-wrong-and-what-friend-of-the-family-got-right\/","title":{"rendered":"What it got wrong and what &#8216;Friend of the Family&#8217; got right"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<aside class=\"gnt_em gnt_em__fp gnt_em_vp__tp gnt_em__el\" aria-label=\"Video - Safety was priority on set of 'A Friend of the Family'\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">This month a TV series premiered about a series of disturbing and heinous crimes committed by a seemingly innocuous white man, and it managed to neither exploit or disrespect his victims nor sensationalize his crime.  It was a reserved, cautionary tale that sought to educate more than titillate. <\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">I&#8217;m talking, of course, about Peacock&#8217;s &#8220;A Friend of the Family.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Did you think I meant Netflix&#8217;s &#8220;Dahmer &#8211; Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story&#8221;?  While that is also a true-crime story about a man who did truly evil things, it is not what anyone would call respectful.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Comparing &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; to &#8220;Friend,&#8221; released a week later on a less prominent streaming service, provides case studies in true crime.  The former is about one of the country&#8217;s most notorious serial killers, who murdered and dismembered 17 men and boys in Ohio and Wisconsin between 1978 and 1991. The latter is about a pedophile who wormed his way into the lives of an Idaho family in the 1970s , preying on their young daughter.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Both are heinous acts that are difficult to contemplate, but &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; lacks the sensitivity and tact of &#8220;Friend.&#8221;  &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; has angered the families of the serial killer&#8217;s victims, while &#8220;Family&#8221; was made with the cooperation of the survivor at the story&#8217;s center.  <\/p>\n<figure class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_img\"><\/figure>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">To put it simply, &#8220;Friend&#8221; does true crime right, and &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; gets it disturbingly wrong. <\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;Dahmer,&#8221; which jumped to the top of Netflix&#8217;s top 10 list with shocking speed, has been roundly beaten by the families of the victims and critics as a work that re-traumatizes those connected with the Dahmer crimes.  Produced by Ryan Murphy, the series claims to be about &#8220;the underserved institutional victims and their communities impacted by the systemic racism and failures of the police that allowed one of America&#8217;s most notorious serial killers to continue his murderous spree in plain sight,&#8221; according to Netflix&#8217;s description, but that is grasping at straws.  &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; has also received flack for giving more airtime to the murderer&#8217;s life and state of mind than his victims &#8216;dignity.  <\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><strong class=\"gnt_ar_b_al\">More:<\/strong>From texting suicide to child murder, why Hollywood should stay away from some true crime<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">As its title \u2013 which repeats &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; twice \u2013 suggests, the series is singularly focused on one deeply evil human, played by Murphy regular Evan Peters.  The first few episodes are intensely focused on Dahmer&#8217;s life, flashing back to his gruesome childhood and setting the stage for his future depravities.  Even episodes that offer more screen time for Dahmer&#8217;s victims, as the series seems to promise, get the balance wrong.  The sixth installment \u2013 \u200b\u200babout victim Tony Hughes (Rodney Burford) \u2013 makes the most effort to prioritize the victim over the killer, but still ends with Dahmer literally consuming him.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_img\"><img class=\"gnt_em_img_i\" style=\"height:356px\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/10\/07\/USAT\/f1db4059-44cc-4ae5-b8b3-d4dfd75d4337-NUP_198574_00006.jpeg?ssl=1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Jake Lacy as Robert &quot;B&quot; Berchtold &quot;A Friend of the Family.&quot;\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"\/><\/figure>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;Friend&#8221; is the polar opposite of &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; when it comes to the portrayal of violence and horror.  Where &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; explicitly shows the violent acts, &#8220;Friend&#8221; is tactful and vague about the abuse of predator Robert &#8220;B&#8221; Berchtold (Jake Lacy).  Where &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; spotlights its &#8220;monster,&#8221; &#8220;Friend&#8221; puts the emphasis on its survivor, Jan Broberg (Hendrix Yancey and then Mckenna Grace after a time jump) and her parents (Colin Hanks and Anna Paquin), who were also victimized in many ways by B. Where &#8220;Dahmer&#8221; focuses on what Dahmer did, &#8220;Friend&#8221; focuses on how B was able to do it. <\/p>\n<aside aria-label=\"advertisement\" class=\"gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al\"\/>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><strong class=\"gnt_ar_b_al\">More:<\/strong>Netflix goes all in on Jeffrey Dahmer with new &#8216;Conversations With a Killer&#8217; documentary<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;Friend&#8221; never equivocates about the horrible things B did.  The man was a pillar of his small community and used his charm to manipulate his way into the Broberg family, eventually kidnapping Jan twice in the space of two years, molesting and brainwashing her in the process.  But it doesn&#8217;t linger, in its camera work or dialogue, on the particulars of child abuse.  It does focus on how child abuse can occur in any family, anywhere, even in a respectable Idaho town where no one locks their doors.  It&#8217;s about how the Broberg family is ripped apart, and how young Jan is forever scarred by what happened to her.  &#8220;Friend&#8221; is less about the criminal and more about a cautionary tale about the survivors. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_img\"><img class=\"gnt_em_img_i\" style=\"height:353px\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/10\/07\/USAT\/6e439cef-cd49-4a72-8894-b0d0a0028a10-NUP_198575_00010asd.jpeg?ssl=1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mckenna Grace as Jan Broberg &quot;A Friend of the Family.&quot;\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"\/><\/figure>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">True crime remains one of the most popular TV genres, and while our fascination in turning real horror into entertainment is concerning in its own right, these two series illustrate that some are more adept at bringing these stories to the small screen.  They don&#8217;t have to be exploitative or gratuitous.  They don&#8217;t have to center on the perpetrators.  They don&#8217;t have to be about generating hateful headlines and awards-bait performances.  They can be a vehicle to discover society&#8217;s bigger failings and give light to victims and survivors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">If we have to make it at all, true crime TV can be just a little less awful.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><strong class=\"gnt_ar_b_al\">More:<\/strong>Jeffrey Dahmer series is gruesome.  It&#8217;s also No.1 on Netflix.  What does that say about us?<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"gnt_em_gl_i\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/06\/13\/USAT\/1e167c79-4195-417c-96c9-3cd274c65b67-michael-stuhlbarg-colin-firth_0.jpeg?resize=660%2C372&#038;ssl=1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/06\/13\/USAT\/1e167c79-4195-417c-96c9-3cd274c65b67-michael-stuhlbarg-colin-firth_0.jpeg?crop=1919,1080,x0,y98&amp;width=1320&amp;height=744&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp 2x\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"372\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This month a TV series premiered about a series of disturbing and heinous crimes committed by a seemingly innocuous white man, and it managed to neither exploit or disrespect his victims nor sensationalize his crime. It was a reserved, cautionary tale that sought to educate more than titillate. I&#8217;m talking, of course, about Peacock&#8217;s &#8220;A &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/what-it-got-wrong-and-what-friend-of-the-family-got-right\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">What it got wrong and what &#8216;Friend of the Family&#8217; got right<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":105009,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/jeffrey-dahmer-halloween-costumes-being-removed-from-ebay\/","url_meta":{"origin":92992,"position":0},"title":"Jeffrey Dahmer Halloween costumes being removed from eBay","date":"October 22, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"CNN \u2014 Netflix's hit series \u201cMonster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story\u201d has sparked renewed interest in the notorious serial killer just in time for Halloween season, but at least one online retailer is shutting down sales of Dahmer costumes. A spokesperson for eBay confirmed to CNN in an email listings described\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":103948,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/lionel-dahmer-considers-suing-netflix-for-exalting-jeffreys-murders\/","url_meta":{"origin":92992,"position":1},"title":"Lionel Dahmer considers suing Netflix for exalting Jeffrey&#8217;s murders","date":"October 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer's elderly father is considering suing Netflix over two of its hit series about his infamous son, according to a report. Lionel Dahmer, 86, is reportedly upset that he was never contacted regarding Netflix's popular series \u201cDahmer \u2013 Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,\u201d which was released in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"Research chemist\/author Lionel Dahmer, father of confessed serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, stands outside of Columbia Correctional Institute where his son is imprisoned.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/dahmer-lawsuit-646.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":105914,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/jeffrey-dahmers-dad-targeted-by-crazed-underwear-throwing-fans\/","url_meta":{"origin":92992,"position":2},"title":"Jeffrey Dahmer&#8217;s dad targeted by crazed, underwear-throwing fans","date":"October 23, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Jeffery Dahmer's dad is said to be undies attack In the wake of Netflix's explosively viral series, \u201cDahmer \u2014 Monster: The Jeffery Dahmer Story,\u201d overzealous fans of the 10-part anthology have allegedly swarmed the Ohio home of the late serial killer's father, Lionel Dahmer, 86, with vicious, and sometimes lusty,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"Lionel Dahmer in court","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/Lionel_Dahmer.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":105335,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/jeffrey-dahmers-dad-has-panties-thrown-onto-his-drive-as-second-sick-fan-showed-up-acting-violent-after-netflix-show\/","url_meta":{"origin":92992,"position":3},"title":"Jeffrey Dahmer&#8217;s dad has panties thrown onto his drive as second sick fan showed up acting &#8216;violent&#8217; after Netflix show","date":"October 23, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"SICK Jeffrey Dahmer fans have shown up at his dad's home since the release of a hit Netflix show about the serial killer - with one even throwing her panties onto his driveway. The Milwaukee Cannibal's dad Lionel is said to have been left a \u201cnervous wreck\u201d since drama series\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"Dahmer had multiple interviews with the public during his incarceration and continually confessed his killings.  The tapes obtained by his defensive legal team were used by netflix for their Conversations with a Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes series","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-sun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/78c2d036-b66d-4723-8f22-2f94b73827be.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":105266,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/jeffrey-dahmers-dad-lionel-is-still-angry-killer-son-was-murdered-in-prison-and-believes-guards-looked-the-other-way\/","url_meta":{"origin":92992,"position":4},"title":"Jeffrey Dahmer&#8217;s dad Lionel is still angry killer son was murdered in prison and &#8216;believes guards looked the other way&#8217;","date":"October 23, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"JEFFREY Dahmer's dad is \u201cstill p****d\u201d over his serial killer son's brutal murder in prison almost 30 years ago, his carer has told The US Sun. The Milwaukee Cannibal was beaten to death with a metal bar in November 1994 by fellow inmate Christopher Scarver. 7Jeffrey Dahmer's father is still\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"Jeffrey Dahmer's father is still mad his son was brutally killed in prison, his care told The US Sun","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-sun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/chose-victims-claim-killing-means-767100072.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":103379,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/dahmer-andor-nielsen-ratings-are-in\/","url_meta":{"origin":92992,"position":5},"title":"&#8220;Dahmer,&#8221; &#8220;Andor&#8221; Nielsen Ratings Are In","date":"October 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"\r \r \r \r Netflix Nielsen has today released their ratings for the week of September 19th-25th and Netflix's Jeffrey Dahmer limited series dominated the charts. Even though it was only available for five of the seven days of that week, the show pulled in 3.66 billion minutes of viewing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cdn.darkhorizons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/dahmer-andor-nielsen-ratings-are-in.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/09\/23\/USAT\/b8c9d312-f310-4640-8339-d2b62f8b75ab-DAHMER_S1_E2_00_01_38_23R.jpg?width=660&height=277&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92992"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=92992"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92992\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=92992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=92992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=92992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}