Alias Grace

Limited TV Series, 2017

I refer below to the Netflix series, though there is also an original novel of the same name. Heavy spoilers ahead.


Premise - Psychologist Dr. Simon Jordan wishes to write a scientific report on the case of celebrated murderess, Grace Marks, that may pardon her of her crimes. As he interviews her, however, he struggles to discern the difference between truth and fiction. Based loosely on historical facts surrounding Grace Marks' murder trial.


Review - This is going to be less of a review, and more of a lengthy set of interpretations. All in all, if a TV show is making me think this much, it's got to be good. So trust that I loved it. I loved the ambiguity, and how much weight is carried on a truth we never truly uncover. I loved the unreliable narrator format. I love how we stop caring whether or not Grace is innocent or guilty, and just wish the best for her anyways. In a simple viewing, the end may seem straightforward enough. However, I came up with three likely interpretations, one of which (and perhaps the least expected one) I believe to be the most plausible.

1) The straightforward answer? Grace Marks has Dissociative Identity Disorder (I think people more commonly refer to this as Multiple Personality Disorder, which is not an actual diagnosis), likely triggered by her traumatic past. Jeremiah hypnotized Grace, and her vengeful alter-ego taking the form of Mary Whitney came to the surface. It's sort of a reverse Fight Club, in which instead of two actors playing one character, it is revealed that the one actress has multiple characters within her. "Mary" participated in the murders, and Grace took no part. Whether or not you believe that makes Grace innocent is a separate scientific question, but it was hard enough for the spectators to believe this is a possible natural phenomenon. At the time this story took place, Dissociative Identity Disorder was unheard of, as were most mental illnesses, and Grace's affliction was thought as a spiritual phenomenon. Which brings us to possibility #2...

2) Mary Whitney's soul never escaped out of the window when she died, and overtook Grace Marks. Grace was truly haunted by Mary Whitney's spirit at the time of the murders. This was not science, it was an act of God. And honestly, why not? This is a piece of fiction. Who is to say that she can't be possessed by a ghost? But given the role of science in the film, I don't believe this to be the case. Instead I go for possibility #3, which is...

3) Grace is stringing us (and the doctor) along the whole time. We know that Jeremiah is not a hypnotist. He's an illusionist. Is it possible that he's so overwhelmingly persuasive that he caused Grace's fragile mind to bend to his will? I suppose... but it's far more likely that she and Jeremiah were just putting on a show, whether or not they had planned one in advance. Grace could have been faking that accent, faking her story, pretending to fall asleep and wake up whenever asked... And along that train of thought, perhaps none of the information we were given was reliable to begin with. Any of the flashbacks we saw could be equally true and untrue. We already know this to be the case, given that we see two separate flashbacks of Nancy's strangling - one in which Grace/Mary participates, and the other in which she does not. One flashback is not revealed to be any more true than the other, so what is the point of the flashbacks and the story she tells Dr. Jordan? Could Grace's story be truth, fiction, and any mix thereof? Thematically, this answer makes the most sense, too. The original novel was based on historical events. Margaret Atwood, nor anyone else besides Grace Marks, can ever know the truth of what happened. Anything we say about the murder is, and can only be, a story. Some stories are more interesting than others, so we tell the more interesting ones. Whether that's Margaret Atwood glorifying the story, or the fictional Grace herself, we don't know. We'll never know anyways, nor is it our right to know, a concept which psychologists like Dr. Jordan have trouble grasping because we so desire to resolve the mystery in our own minds. But curiosity killed the cat.

We'll never know the answer to which interpretation is true (another reason to side with interpretation #3), but any one of them makes for an incredibly gripping story. (88/100)

Quote - "If we were all on trial for our thoughts, we would all be hanged."

What to watch for - I personally am I huge fan of Zachary Levi and loved to see him as Jeremiah the Peddler.

If you liked this TV show, I'd recommend How To Get Away with Murder!

Original Author: Margaret Atwood
Director: Mary Harron
Network: Netflix