‘The Beast in Me’ review: An uneven, tense thriller

In Netflix’s gripping but uneven thriller The Beast in Me, a conflict between neighbors grows into a dangerous game of murder and manipulation.

Writer Aggie Wiggs (Claire Danes) may live in an enviably gorgeous Long Island home, but she’s had more than her fair share of misery. After the death of her young son in an accident, she and her wife (Natalie Morales) split up. To make matters, and finances, worse, Aggie can’t break through the writer’s block that’s been haunting her for months. Oh, and there’s the matter of New York’s most infamous man moving next door and disrupting her peace.

That would be Nile Jarvis (Matthew Rhys), the smarmy real estate magnate who may or may not have killed his first wife (Leila George). With a new wife (Brittany Snow, crushing the dramatic rich wife subgenre this year) in tow, Nile wants to gift his new neighborhood with a state-of-the-art jogging trail. He just needs his neighbors’ approval to start construction, and Aggie’s the only one willing to stand in his way.

Write what you know, but be careful.

It’s a simplistic setup for what becomes a nail-biting cat-and-mouse game. Aggie’s need to write a gripping new book matches Nile’s need to get everything he wants. When Aggie agrees to write a biography about Nile, he sees an opportunity to rehabilitate his damaged image. But Aggie won’t write Nile’s story with objectivity. As a man who’s unused to the word “no,” Nile is incensed by Aggie’s determination not to be swayed by money or power. “Everyone has a price,” Nile insists, even though Aggie refuses to be bought.

Created and showran by former writers of The X-Files and 24, The Beast in Me is never better when pitting its complex leads against one another. Nile is a bomb on the verge of explosion, but so is Aggie, whose grief clouds her boundaries and sense of judgment. Danes and Rhys, themselves leads of two of the past decade’s best series (Homeland and The Americans, respectively) are thrilling and horrifying to watch as they try to outwit one another.

An intermittently gripping thriller.

The series is less entrancing when the focus pulls from them. Subplots and detours include the Jarvis family’s real estate empire, and its detractors, Aggie’s ex’s artwork, and an affair between FBI agents. These eventually lead us to the thrilling conclusion of The Beast in Me, but come at the expense of its leads meeting often. Nile and Aggie’s standoffs almost feel like a relief despite their tension, because it at least returns to the show’s most compelling dynamic.

The supporting cast is excellent, too – Snow’s Nina is more than just Nile’s trophy wife, Hettienne Park is an FBI agent with personal and professional demons to slay. Their performances elevate their subplots, and hold their own with Danes and Rhys. There are some twists, but more turns, and most reveals feel like the most straightforward conclusions.

Nile and Aggie are onscreen together less as the series goes on—their individual performances thrill, but never so much as when the pair bounce off one another. Each have a beast within them, threatening to get out, and when they do, you won’t be able to take your eyes off them.

When the series strays from uniting its two leads, The Beast in Me loses its most compelling elements despite the obvious talent of the supporting cast. With a plot that barrels toward a resolution rather than a mystery, it’s easy to guess where the story might lead. But the electrifying presence of Danes and Rhys, when together, makes the straightforward destination well worth the journey.

The Beast in Me is out now on Netflix. 

Images courtesy of Netflix.

Claire Di Maio

Claire was once asked in elementary school why her go-to question was always, “Watch anything good lately?” It’s still her go-to question, because she loves hearing what other people are passionate about. She often sacrifices sleep in the hopes that she will one day clear her to-watch and to-read lists (a futile effort so far).