If You’re Loving ‘Under the Bridge,’ Watch Hulu’s Other Twisted True Crime Series

The big picture

• The girl from Plainville
  explores the real-life case of Michelle Carter, highlighting the consequences of her actions.
• Carter's portrayal of Elle Fanning creates empathy despite her role in a tragic event involving a teenage suicide.
• Both of us
  The girl from Plainville
  i
  under the bridge
  offers insight into the complicated minds of teenage girls and the consequences of being ignored.

There has long been a stereotype of teenage girls being dangerous, and sometimes that assumption seems true. The track appears on Hulu's under the bridge. In the true-crime drama series, the frustration and invisibility felt by the teenage girls in the story boil over until they actually commit a heinous crime. The group is known as “Bics”; when an adult asks why, a girl replies, “Because we're disposable.” It is this quest to be seen and to be appreciated that fuels their reckless and often destructive behaviors. But before under the bridgeanother Hulu true crime series examined what happens when a teenage girl makes deadly decisions in their desire to be loved, or even to be seen as someone of value.

What is “The Plainville Girl” about?

In 2022, Hulu aired the 8-episode series The girl from Plainville. It represents the true case of Michelle Carter (Elle Fanning), a teenage girl who was charged with involuntary manslaughter after encouraging her boyfriend, Conrad Roy (Colton Ryan), to commit suicide. The case itself attracted a lot of attention when the public learned about it. Roy, 18, killed himself in 2014 after receiving text messages from Carter, who apparently urged him to complete the task. Carter was charged in 2015 with involuntary manslaughter (including a charge of “willfully and recklessly” aiding suicide). Carter was only 17 when she was tried.

The trial became a media sensation (in part because of the shocking nature of the crime, and also because Carter appeared in court with strange dark eyebrows, which went viral). The case even inspired an HBO documentary called I Love You Now Die: The Commonwealth Vs. Michelle Carter. But it wasn't until The girl from Plainville broadcast that the public might actually know who Carter was as a person and what might have led her to those ultimately disastrous actions.

Elle Fanning Leads Strong Cast in 'The Girl From Plainville'

One of the main reasons why the series was successful was because of the cast. Fanning was able to achieve what most people doubted she could: they really create compassion for Carter. How can you find empathy for someone who directly caused the death of a young man he claimed to love? Fanning portrayed Carter as a deeply troubled young woman who was determined to get attention (even if that attention came because of her boyfriend's suicide). Ryan did not have as long a list of credits as Fanning at the time of filming The girl from Plainville (perhaps his most memorable role before that was Connor Murphy in the film version of Dear Evan Hansen), but was more than capable of staying in the series. It is through Ryan's vulnerability and heart that the audience experiences the depths of Roy's pains and sees the steps he takes to try to fight his own demons.

The show also benefited from a strong supporting cast, including Oscar nominees Chloe Sevigny and Tony winner Norbert Leo Butz like Roy's grieving parents. The team behind the series, incl Liz Hannah (The abandonment) i Lisa Cholodenko (Awesome), ensured that there was always a build-up of tension throughout each episode. Most viewers would already know Roy's fate, but they may not have known the events leading up to his death. High-caliber actors, along with insightful writing, resulted a series that hit with a heartbreaking inevitability. There was even an air of likability around Carter's character (which was heightened by the inclusion of scenes of her struggling to fit in with her peers and engaging in eating disorder behavior). But it was also clear that Carter was a deeply damaged girl who only thrived when she got the attention she craved.

“The Plainville Girl” has a similar tone to “Under the Bridge”

One of the biggest similarities under the bridge share with The girl from Plainville it's your non-linear timeline. There are many flashbacks that depict the characters in earlier scenes, often before the most traumatic events occurred. This allows the audience to see the innocence of the victims that existed before the tragic deaths. Both series also rely on stellar performances from younger actors concentrate on the thoughts and behaviors of the characters, as well as on more grounded scenes with the adult actors (such as Archie Punjabi in under the bridge and Sevigny The girl from Plainville). Without such a strong cast and high-quality writing, the jump between time periods would be confusing. With both series, this technique only adds more depth to the overall story. While most viewers already know the final fate of the characters, the writing on both shows is suspenseful enough to keep the intrigue going.

Both series deal with an extremely difficult subject. In The girl from Plainville, the episodes deal with sensitive topics such as eating disorders, depression, anxiety, domestic violence and suicide. But these issues are handled with care and not used in a salty way, but only to enhance viewers' understanding of the characters. Both shows stay focused on how teenage brains often work: with a focus on being accepted, no matter the cost or consequences. In The girl from Plainville, many scenes illustrate this black and white thinking that both Carter and Roy fell victim to; they believed that things would always be desperate, so they acted with thoughtless desperation. As a viewer who only tunes into the lives of these characters, it's easy to see that it's not until the teenagers reach adulthood that they realize their problems stem from immaturity and surrounding themselves with the wrong people (which is evident in both series). .

There is a scene The girl from Plainville where the series imagines what would have happened if Carter hadn't insisted on texting Roy that fateful day. Maybe they would have met in a college bar, and talked about their interests in a more normal way. They could have developed a relationship that grew from a healthy space versus an inherently toxic one. It's a disturbing scene that leaves viewers even more heartbroken because of what it entails. I like under the bridge, The girl from Plainville offers to the public a nuanced look at the complicated minds of teenage girls. As with these two real-life cases, it's clear that if left unchecked, desperate girls can take drastic measures that end up with the loss of innocent lives.

The girl from Plainville is available to stream on Hulu.

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