The Girl from Plainville review: Elle Fanning’s true-crime drama about assisted suicide is more of a love story

3/5

Story: In 2014, 18-year-old Conrad Roy (Coco), a troubled young man who’d attempted suicide earlier, is successful on his second attempt. Following his death, his ‘girlfriend’ Michelle Carter (Elle Fanning), who family and friends did not know of, reaches out to them to support each other through their grieving process. However, when police dig into the circumstances leading to the death of Conrad, they find that he’d been goaded on to go through with suicide by Michelle.

Review: Conrad Roy III was suicidal, no doubt, but he got scared during his first attempt and called for help. He called for help during his second attempt too, only this time, the person at the other end told him to go through with it. And that’s how the 18-year-old died of carbon monoxide poisoning in his truck.

The Girl From Plainville, which is streaming now on LionsgatePlay, is about the person at the other end of Conrad’s phone conversation the night he died – Michelle Carter, his girlfriend. But more importantly, while it is meant to be a true-crime drama about the events leading up to the untimely death of the youngster, it became more about their tragic love story. She was eventually convicted on charge of involuntary manslaughter for abetting and goading Conrad on to commit suicide.

This story has now been stretched into 8 long episodes that feel a tad sympathetic towards Michelle. The established fact is that Conrad was struggling with mental health issues – he’d already tried to off himself once, so it seems no wonder he did it again, successfully. But what The Girl From Plainville also does is paint Michelle as a victim – of big pharma. She’s also messed up owing to a continued struggle with an eating disorder, for which she’s on medication. Meds that could have potentially contributed towards her behaviour and handling of her relationship with Conrad, especially during the last few months, where she was convinced that she was doing right by him by supporting him in his quest to end his life.

Michelle, apparently, was not in the right frame of mind when she told Conrad to get back in his truck, after he hesitated to go through with his suicide bid. But although she was convicted for involuntary manslaughter and got 15 months jail time, she spent less than a year locked up, after three months were knocked off for her ‘good behaviour’. That’s a tough one to digest.

Elle Fanning as Michelle is what keeps this series afloat. Right from the moment we first saw Elle as Michelle, we know something’s not quite right with her. It’s a pitch perfect performance, no doubt, but one that makes the whole show about her, and perhaps also why Michelle Carter is not the villain in this tale. The tone of the show felt as if the makers wanted to white-wash Michelle’s involvement in Conrad’s death and draw sympathy to her. A more balanced approach would have been more appropriate.

Verdict: The Girl from Plainville would have greatly benefitted from some tight editing; it’s at least two episodes too long. Although Elle Fanning’s performance was outstanding, making Michelle Carter the right amount of creepy, I cannot help but feel that the documentary I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth v. Michelle Carter, might be a less romanticized version of events.