Explaining the story of Netflix’s “Baby Reindeer”

Netflix’s latest viral hit, baby reindeersparking strong reactions from viewers and critics, achieving a perfect 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

The seven-episode limited drama series is written and produced by Scottish comedian Richard Gadd, who stars as Donnie Dunn, an alternate version of himself.

The series follows Donnie’s downward spiral when he meets a lonely woman named Martha (Jessica Gunning) who turns from friend to stalker. Donnie tries to escape Martha’s obsession while recovering from the lingering effects of her past trauma.

From the very first scene, baby reindeer The viewer is drawn in by Donny’s visibly desperate struggle to get the police to take his situation seriously.

Is “Baby Reindeer” based on a true story?

Richard Gadd told Variety that the series is “100% emotionally true” and that the events of the story are “borrowed from instances that happened to me and people I’ve met in real life.” . But of course, for legal and artistic reasons, it is not possible to accurately represent the truth. ”

This is one of those stranger-than-novel stories. baby reindeer They don’t bring the messy realities of life to the surface and aren’t afraid to show the vulnerabilities of flawed people and the shortcomings of vulnerable people.

Rather than reducing the story to a tale of stalker and victim, Gadd emphasizes the humanity of everyone involved and is brutally honest about his own mistakes in handling the situation.

Mr Gadd told The Independent that he was careful not to portray the character Martha as a “monster” because he believed “she was unwell and the system had failed her”.

Who stars in Netflix’s “Baby Reindeer”?

baby reindeer It revolves around a small number of strong, perfectly cast characters. Richard Gadd’s quiet charisma underpins the series, but Jessica Gunning’s performance as Martha is surprisingly nuanced, at once sympathetic and unsettling. .

Gunning’s Martha uses joy and laughter as a mask, always on the verge of slipping away. She is always on the lookout for any signs of her rejection, she visibly struggles to contain her anger, and she is constantly writhing beneath the surface.

Nava Mau plays Teri, a trans woman who struggles to date Donny during her most unstable and demoralizing days. Terry is definitely the best-adapted character here, but even she is consumed by the stress and trauma emanating from Donnie.

Tom Goodman-Hill gives a very chilling performance as Darian, a successful writer who appears to be Donnie’s thoughtful mentor, before revealing his true intentions.

Darian is soft-spoken and calm, and is able to maintain a gentleness in his voice even as he fucks Donny in increasingly horrifying ways.

There is no morality in the story of “Baby Reindeer”

baby reindeer It covers many sensitive subjects without preaching to the audience. It’s about loneliness, obsession, paranoia, and how male victims of sexual violence struggle to be taken seriously by society and themselves.

“When men are stalked, it’s often portrayed as sexy in movies and on TV,” Gadd told the Times. “Like a femme fatale who gradually becomes more evil. The threat of physical violence is less common and less common, so it can be trivialized.”

More than anything, baby reindeer It’s a story about the radioactive and corrosive nature of “trauma” and all the nasty ways it manifests itself in life. The show never says how it feels about these things. It just depicts collapse.

This story is not simply about a nefarious stalker targeting a tragic victim, but about a man who makes the mistake of forgiving a paranoid and dangerous woman. Donnie certainly doesn’t deserve to put up with Martha’s stalking, but he’s making the situation even worse by withdrawing from the confrontation.

Donnie makes terrible decisions throughout the series, but they also make him more human. He is always thinking of pursuing greatness or avoiding awkwardness, but this only brings more chaos into his life.

Martha showed red flags from their first interaction, but Donnie was depressed and enjoyed her ridiculous flattery. Donnie is fascinated by her to her core, even at her most free-spirited and obsessive.

Mr Gadd told the Guardian: We keep lying because it’s easier to avoid the tension of the situation. ”

Explaining the ending of Netflix’s “Baby Reindeer”

Gad draws parallels between his character and Martha from the beginning, but it is revealed that Donnie is still a functioning member of society, while Martha is not.

By the final episode, the similarities between the two are stronger than ever. At this point, Martha has been sentenced to several months in prison and a restraining order has been issued against her, but Donnie still listens to Martha’s voicemails obsessively.

In one of those messages, Martha alludes to an abusive childhood in which the only solace she remembers was a toy reindeer, the titular “baby reindeer.” Martha is, in her mind, just as terribly lonely and traumatized as he is.

The series ends with Donnie in a similar situation to Martha, with Gadd suggesting that there is a fine line between artistic eccentricity and deep social alienation.

To make matters worse, Donnie didn’t go back to his abuser and exact some kind of righteous revenge, but did have a private conversation with him before accepting his job offer. Donnie chose to follow his dreams over his own dignity and self-worth and did exactly what he feared.

The ending remains ambiguous, as Donnie has a chance to succeed by working for the man who raped him. Maybe he even has a chance at true happiness, but he still carries the trauma that destroyed his life and finds himself once again under the control of his abuser.

He may eventually become a Martha, even if he isn’t already.