Appearing on Netflix in February 2021 is Behind Her Eyes. Based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Sarah Pinborough, Behind Her Eyes tells of a menage a trois between secretary Louise (Simona Brown), her boss David (Tom Bateman), and his wife Adele (Eve Hewson). Except that nothing is quite as it seems.
The story opens with Louise literally bumping into David on a night out and, as she is divorced and lonely, staying to talk to him. She later discovers that he is her new boss at her job. David’s wife Adele is flakey and on drugs to cope with whatever is wrong with her … and David and Adele seem obsessed with each other, each wanting to know where the other is at all times – it’s not a very good or healthy relationship. But then David and Louise take it to the next level and start sleeping together … and you know this isn’t going to end well.
Add to the mix diversionary flashbacks of Adele’s life when she was younger, at a mental health facility in Scotland where her best friend is a gay lad called Rob (Robert Aramayo) … and also Louise’s frequent dreams of finding doorways which lead elsewhere, and of her running through a strange building where the walls seem to breathe … and you know that somewhere these stories are going to intersect and collide.
It’s just how they intersect which forms the most interesting part of the narrative and which form the basis for the big ‘reveal’ in the final episode as to what has actually been going on the whole time. And this is something that I’m not going to spoil in this review, as it’s worth watching to see it for yourself.
Many other reviews that I have seen have claimed that the ending is not understandable or believable, but I beg to differ. All the clues are there, and it’s something of a shocking way to end the drama. Other commentators have noted that they dislike the supernatural twist which is given to the proceedings … but I like that sort of thing … taking well known and documented facts and just giving them a twist to provide you with the element of shock you needed.
Unfortunately, the opening episode is very slow, and the pace doesn’t pick up until around episodes three and four … perhaps this should have been a three-hour drama rather than six? But it’s worth persisting with to get to the end … when, if you hadn’t spotted it (I did spot what the twist was for the record), you get a good pay off to all that has gone before and most loose ends are tied up.
I have not read the novel, so I can’t comment on how accurately the teleplay represents the book, but overall this is an effective and diverting thriller, with a dash of the supernatural to keep things interesting.
An Effective and Diverting Thriller
Name: Behind Her Eyes
Description: It follows Louise, a single mom with a son and a part-time job in a psychiatrist's office. She begins an affair with her boss and strikes up an unlikely friendship with his wife.
David J Howe, is the author and co-author of numerous books about the TV Show “Doctor Who”, as well as being a freelance writer and Editorial Director of Telos Publishing Ltd.
