Serial Killers Analyzed | The True Horror of MINDHUNTER
In this video, I dive into the horror and genius of Ed Kemper's hospital scene in MINDHUNTER.
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Mindhunter is one of the most underrated and obscure shows on Netflix. It follows two FBI Agents, Holden Ford and Bill Tench, who interview convicted serial killers to understand the mind of a psychopath, all the while being breathed down the neck by the FBI, who just wants to keep solving murders the old fashion way. The show is shot, written, and directed expertly. Speaking of directing, this masterpiece is directed by legend David Fincher, famous for directing movies such as Zodiac, Fight Club, Gone Girl, and Se7en.
In this video, I’m going to be talking about the genius of the final scene of the ninth episode of Mindhunter. And to properly do this, I’m going to go through each of the 8 elements outlined on Masterclass.com to make a great scene.
Before I start discussing each point, I’m going to give background on the scene from the rest of the show. By the way, spoilers ahead…
In early 1977, while on a cross country assignment, Special Agent Holden Ford decides to interview convicted murderer Edmund Kemper to acquire “insights” into the psyche of what he calls “crazy.” Over the course of the first season of Mindhunter, Holden interviews Kemper multiple times, forming a twisted bond with the psychopathic killer. What’s really interesting is that, in this show, Kemper is the first, and only really, true friend to Holden. Other than when he’s around his girlfriend, Debbie, Holden never lets his guard down around other people, he never speaks unprofessionally, except around Kemper.
Now while Holden is reaping benefits for the FBI from his conversations with Kemper, Kemper also is reaping benefits--but for himself. This is Kemper’s only friend also, for no one had ever wanted to speak with him since his killings. He grew attached to Holden, he grew dependent on Holden, and when Holden stopped wanting to talk to him--Kemper broke down. Constantly annoying Holden with letter after letter after letter, Holden still would refuse to go and visit it. That is, until Kemper chose a different method...
Nearing the end of his rope, Kemper decided to take it up a notch; he labeled Holden as his emergency contact, then attempted a suicide... During this time, Holden went through a breakup and a serious threat to his career with the FBI. When he got the phone call, with no direction left in life, Holden flew to the California Correctional Facility with a dishevelled head of hair and no more will to live...
Now, after this video, I would recommend watching the full scene--it’s cinema and horror at its very finest. But now I’m going to briefly summarize the scene. Holden comes in to see Kemper, and Kemper starts asking him why he hasn’t been coming. Kemper then shows his self inflicted wound and explained that suicide was the only thing that could get Holden to come see him. Holden is still not in the right mind, so he just kind of vibes while Kemper is talking to him. But then, when Kemper notices that the nurses behind the glass have left, he quickly stands up and runs to stop Holden from leaving. Holden, naturally, gets pretty scared. Kemper starts explaining how every girl he killed is still with him, as spirit wives, and that he could easily kill Holden and make Holden stay with him in spirit forever. Nervously, Holden stays silent, then Kemper eerily hugs him. Holden pushes himself out of the hug and runs outside into the hospital, which is pretty ironic because he then falls to the ground and says he can’t breath--then cut to black.
(Right here is just like a screen with the first point)
A good scene has a specific storytelling purpose:
This scene has many purposes, but the main purpose can be boiled down to a conclusion for Holden’s character arc for the first season. But I’ll get into that with more detail later.
A good scene provides valuable information:
The first dialogue in this scene shows the viewer that Kemper read a news article about how Holden used the things he learned from Kemper to convict a rapist/murderer. He then says that in his letters he was offering more insights into a psychopathic mind. Up until now, the viewer knew about the letters, but had no idea what was actually said in the letters. Kemper then asks Holden to categorize him based on his psychology, which isn’t very important for this point, but what IS important is that during this 30 second exchange, Kemper continues to look to the window at the nurses; but the viewer still doesn’t know WHY yet. Kemper shows Holden his wound, getting close to the edge of the bed, then jumps out and blocks Holden from escaping. Throughout this whole scene, knowledge was given to the audience--but over time, paced cleverly. This is the secret to horror--let your audience figure out for themselves what’s going on without explicitly telling them.
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