‘Baby Reindeer’ a Captivating Story of Obsession
Watch my quick review of Baby Reindeer on TikTok, or check out the super quick versions on Instagram and YouTube.
Netflix’s new limited series Baby Reindeer is based on the real-life story of Richard Gadd, who plays Donny Dunn. After an act of kindness at a bar, Donny attracts the attention and affection of a very dedicated stalker named Martha (Jessica Gunning).
Gunning’s performance is remarkable here, giving Martha a false cheeriness that makes us sympathetic toward her as she slowly amps up her obsession. She’s interesting, mysterious, and there’s a whole ocean of sadness under her every action, so you feel emotionally conflicted as she starts exhibiting increasingly dangerous behavior.
Most of the time in these stories, the man is presented as relatively honorable save for one small slip-up that makes some hot crazy woman obsess over him.
That is not the direction that we take with Baby Reindeer.
The way this story presents our protagonist feels very brave in that he shows himself as rather pathetic and weirdly dependent on the constant ego boost he gets from Martha’s obsession.
Donny knows he’s a hack, he knows his life isn’t great, he knows he’s got a lot of other issues he needs to deal with, but Martha makes him feel like he’s an undiscovered superstar in the making, so their relationship starts with a toxic symbiotic dynamic that makes navigating the whole thing very difficult.
The saving grace in his life is Teri (Nava Mau), who is the most rational and well-adjusted person in the entire story. As a trans woman, she’s already had to deal with her share of bullshit and she’s confident in herself in a way that Donny admires, but can never quite seem to achieve.
This story takes some very dark turns and explores elements of the characters that you just don’t find in the average obsessive fan story. That’s part of what makes it so compelling to watch.
So if you’re ready to go on a fascinating emotional roller coaster, Baby Reindeer is a great limited series to watch.
