Who is Ghislaine Maxwell review: The woman who groomed young girls to satiate Jeffrey Epstein’s libido

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Story: Ghislaine Maxwell, the youngest daughter of former UK media mogul Robert Maxwell, is alleged to have facilitated the grooming of young women, some even teenaged, to be sexually abused by Jeffrey Epstein – the US-based financier, who ‘needed’ to have three orgasms a day. From partaking in the abuse, to actively scouting for girls to satiate Jeffrey’s libido, and then creating a network of recruiters for the job, Ghislaine is alleged to have been actively involved in all of Epstein’s sexual atrocities.

Review: At the time that the three-part documentary Who is Ghislaine Maxwell was ready, the 60-year-old was still awaiting sentencing after being found guilty on five of the six charges brought against her, including sex trafficking of minor girls. When it eventually began streaming, Ghislaine had just been sentenced to 20 years in prison for her crimes, which she was looking at appealing against. So, the timing of the documentary, which is currently streaming on LionsgatePlay in India, couldn’t have been better.

Who is Ghislaine Maxwell is a deep-dive into the life of the woman, who, as the youngest of nine of media mogul Robert Maxwell’s children, grew up as the spoilt brat of the family, became a well-known socialite, with high and mighty friends, and eventually, the partner-in-crime of billionaire Jeffrey Epstein. The three-part documentary has been pieced together from statements of people who knew Ghislaine from college, her days as a high-flying socialite in the UK and US, and from actual victims of abuse at the hands of Epstein, that she had aided and abetted.

What these statements do is paint a pretty damning image of Ghislaine – a predator, who would do anything to please Epstein. What it doesn’t is in explaining what would push a woman like Ghislaine to do these things. How did Epstein have that kind of sway over a powerful woman like Ghislaine? Or was she just a depraved sexual deviant like him? There are testimonies that Ghislaine also partook in some of the abuse, which, according to one statement was her way of ensuring his ‘biological need to have three orgasms a day’ was met. She couldn’t cope with his libido, so, the next best thing was to get a steady flow of girls who could. All that mattered was that these girls had to young; even better if they were underage. Ghislaine’s life appeared to revolve around keeping Epstein happy, but why?

The biggest takeaway from the docu-series, though, is not how much of a monster Ghislaine is, but how the system failed two young women, who tried to expose Epstein and Ghislaine more than two decades ago, which then resulted in hundreds of other girls becoming a part of the abuse and trafficking racket. While Epstein took his own life before his trial, Ghislaine’s sentencing gives some form of closure to the countless victims. But it is difficult to shake the thought that a lot of these atrocities could have been avoided if law enforcement had taken more interest into the allegations made against these rich and powerful people.

Verdict: Who is Ghislaine Maxwell stays true to its title and pieces together her persona based on information shared by acquaintances, employees, etc. There are some sordid details about the abuse unleashed by Ghislaine and Epstein, but the focus remains on the woman who, even after being charged for these crimes, pleads innocence and doesn’t think she ought to be held accountable for any of it.