Monsters Inside: The 24 Faces Of Billy Milligan (2021) Dir: Olivier Megaton
Letterboxd review:
The story of Billy Milligan is one of the most complex and, to be honest, sad true crime cases I've ever learned about. What it tells me is that the criminal judicial system has almost no real capability of coping with people who suffer from extreme mental health conditions.
The information I learned caused me to feel a lot of pity for Milligan. I do not in any way excuse or wish to justify his actions, they are horrendous, but I cannot help but feel as though the government dealt with his case in a really poor manner.
Milligan was a highly vulnerable person with a complicated and hard to deal with condition, and it feels as though he was repeatedly dealt with in incorrect and endangering ways. Whilst I agree he was clearly a remarkably manipulative man, I also don't believe he faked his mental illness.
Time after time, the man was let down by those around him, and left to fall apart under the strain of his own extreme traumas and mental state. That said, it is important not to forget his victims - who, regardless of Milligan's state, were still hurt and traumatised by the man's actions.
This Netflix original limited series does extremely well to tell Milligan's complex story over the course of 4 hour long episodes. I liked that director Olivier Megaton made sure to show the two key perspectives on Milligan's case - it gave me the impression that the series was not overtly biased.
Part of the reason I believe that Milligan was a legitimate Multiple personality case is due to the reactions and interviews of his family members. They all seemed genuine in what they said, without being overly supportive or protective of Billy. They recognised and accepted that he had clearly still committed some terrible crimes.
The soundtrack was excellent, not just from a series aesthetic point of view, but also for audience enjoyment too. It just worked remarkably well.
For the most part, I would say this is a pretty honest portrayal of the case, with the good, the bad and the ugly being shown for the audience to see and construct their own feelings and opinions on the events.
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