The Girl From Plainville

Navigating a case that grabbed headlines because it plays out like a YA tragedy without leaning into the spectacle isn’t easy, but “The Girl From Plainville” digs beneath the familiar images of Michelle Carter’s severe brows in court and offers a perspective that isn’t just a true-crime retelling. If you are looking for solid answers, then you will likely be disappointed — but in a year of limited series tackling stories from the last decade, this is one of the most captivating so far.

Thanks to the astounding Elle Fanning, this series about the Massachusetts girl who did jail time for texting her boyfriend to kill himself moves past the true-crime clichés and persuades us to open our hearts to this troubled teen in all her flawed humanity.

The new miniseries is thoughtful and intelligent.

The Girl From Plainville is a nuanced look at a sensational case that played out with the usual media-induced broad strokes. It may be too nuanced for people looking for a show that utilizes those broad strokes, but the approach will probably be appreciated by those tired of campy true-crime scripted series.

If you have a low tolerance for cringe, “The Girl from Plainville” may push the wrong buttons, but the peek it provides into the adolescent psyche, even psyches as medicated as Michelle’s and Coco’s, is vivid. ... That their virtual existence served as a reality for them is the point, but it’s a little confusing to determine where in time the series is happening from moment to moment. The performances, however, are for the most part superb.

The eight-episode miniseries doesn’t reevaluate or answer any legal or psychological mysteries about the so-called “texting suicide case,” nor does it take sides on the legal issues. But, with a bit of fictional license, it deepens our perceptions of those involved.

The Girl From Plainville‘s emphasis on subjective feelings over objective truths makes it a more thoughtful and interesting example of the ripped-from-the-headlines miniseries than most.

In all, “The Girl From Plainville” ends up a strikingly effective treatment of the very modern question of persona in the digital age.

In the wrong hands, “The Girl From Plainville” could have felt exploitative, but showrunners Liz Hannah and Patrick Macmanus serve up a nuanced, balanced and creatively intriguing approach to the material.

“The Girl From Plainville” starts to feel a bit like a “Law & Order” rerun once it enters the courtroom (not that anything is wrong with “Law & Order” reruns). ... To the series’ credit, it doesn’t sensationalize a case that’s already hard to believe. At the story’s core remains the kind of mystery that resists easy solutions, the kind that aren’t provided and don’t belong here.

When it’s focused on Michelle and Connor’s doomed romance, and the grief of those in Connor’s immediate orbit, “The Girl From Plainville” is intriguing.

While the facts mostly remain the facts (though there’s the standard disclaimer about some of the names and events having been changed), and while it offers new context for those less familiar with the real-life events, the series is ultimately more curious than compassionate towards Michelle.

“The Girl from Plainville” is another standard Hulu true crime series. When it has the opportunity to weave a narrative, away from the confines of a courtroom, it’s impossible to look away. It’s dreamy, disturbing, and impeccably acted by Fanning and Ryan. But it too often falls into the Hulu trap of simply reenacting, presenting the facts and little more.

The whole cast is splendid actually, which might be the biggest reason to tune into The Girl From Plainville, despite its unsteady and drawn-out run.

The performances are great. ... A more avoidable problem is that the script – while better than that of a Lifetime movie, for sure – rarely goes below the surface.

While this exploration does deepen our understanding of the two protagonists, it fails to offer any answers.

While the empathetic series doesn’t go so far as to extend Carter forgiveness for the awful crime of which she was eventually convicted, it does offer a modicum of understanding as to how and why this adolescent tragedy unfolded.

One of the flaws in this well-acted but overly drawn-out limited series is that we never get sufficient insight into Michelle’s behavior.