The acting may be brilliant in the horrible real-life story of a family whose sordid tale ends in a double murder. But when everything about the subjects is so rotten, why on Earth would you want to watch?How fascinatingly horrible were the Murdaugh family? Very, according to how much true-crime content they’ve generated. There’s already been a hit podcast about them, untangling a narrative that began in enviable luxury and ended with a sordid double murder. There’s already been a TV documentary. Now the Murdaughs complete the set with Murdaugh: Death in the Family, the plush fictionalised drama retelling the same awful tale.At its heart is a trio of strong performances, primed for awards season. Jason Clarke – also currently excellent as a different kind of alpha male in The Last Frontier on Apple TV+ – is Richard Alexander “Alex” Murdaugh, a powerhouse personal injury attorney and member of a South Carolina dynasty whose men have been the biggest beasts in the courtroom for generations. Over the years, the Murdaughs – their name looks like “murder” but is pronounced “Murdoch” – have built up a network of acolytes who owe them a living or a favour. Their legal acumen and wealth, combined with a gangster-ish propensity for exploitation and bullying, give them a level of impunity that Alex blithely pushes to its limit. Patricia Arquette is Alex’s wife Maggie, who worries that both his philandering and his opioid addiction have returned – and on the second point at least, she is correct. Continue reading...
Wednesday 15 October 2025
theguardian - 19 hours ago
Murdaugh: Death in the Family review – Patricia Arquette is fantastic in this obscene true-crime drama
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