By: Elena Donatone
As a huge fan of the true crime anthology series Dirty John (2018- Present), I was more than excited when I heard a new season was being released. And with a completely new cast and story!
And I must say, I wasn’t disappointed!
The second season of the show focuses on the true story of wealthy housewife Betty, played by the talented Amanda Peet, and her violent path to revenge towards her former husband Dan (Christian Slater).
In these amazing yet shocking eight episodes, we witness the two fall in and out of love over the course of many decades.
At first, we see Betty as an adult fighting to avoid the divorce, as she is still in love with Dan. On the other hand, the husband is adamant and he cannot wait to leave his past and his wife behind. And it seems like he will win the case easily, as he is also a lawyer and he is aware of all the tricks to get the divorce settled in his favour.
From then on, we are taken back all the way to the couple’s first meeting as college students and it is surprising to see how in love they were!
Nothing seems wrong between them and Betty is very supportive when it comes to his future husband’s career. In fact, while Dan navigates both medicine and law school, Betty is always there, ready to take on yet another job to help him out. Even when she is pregnant!
"Soon you'll be the favorite teacher of classes full of children. And after that, perfect wife and mother making the perfect home."
Years later, the fairy tale we witness slowly starts fading away, as Dan reaches his success through his law firm, and meets and has an affair with his beautiful assistant Linda (Rachel Keller).
With the imminent divorce and Linda now completely in the picture, Betty starts losing control over her life and what holds her family and social status together. And that will have dramatic consequences, as from the first episode we see flash forwards of what happens to Betty and Dan in the end. But I don’t want to spoil it for you, just know there is a murder involved!
"Gaslighting. It's named after a famous motion picture in which a man who wants something from a woman pretends to be her friend, marries her, but in fact, is her enemy. And in the process, being very kind to his victim, but in truth, in every moment, he is undermining her sanity."
Although the plot of this season is what makes it so entertaining and addictive, the acting is brilliant as well!
Amanda Peet is marvellous and she depicts Betty’s spiral into despair in a perfect and dramatic way! You can’t help but empathising with her character, even at her craziest times!
Christian Slater is also amazing as Dan. You will most likely despise his cold and manipulative character right to the end!
I was also happy to see the show focusing on the sexism that was still unfortunately present in the 70s and 80s in the U.S. Especially in very rich and posh places like California, where the show is set.
Betty is the typical rich housewife, who loves shopping and going out for brunches with her friends, but we can see she had dreams and aspirations when she was in college. That all went away when her husband started his own law firm and she was bound to that life, as a woman.
But her strength and independence are shown when she decides to stand up for herself in court, during the divorce settlements.
Unfortunately, her life will go downhill from then on and she will become the cruel villain of her own story!
If you are looking for the next crime series to watch, check out this amazingly shocking story! And if you have missed season 1, binge both seasons on Netflix! It won’t disappoint!
If you want to know more about the real-life Betty and her shocking story, check out this Metro article. But only after watching the show, or the story will be spoiled for you!
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