Super slow start, but still a great episode with two scenes near the end that will leave you hooked to watch the rest of the season.
18 Reviews
Very slow start.
TheFirst0127 August 2019
Intellectual Cop Show
Hitchcoc18 October 2017
While the acting is a bit stiff (especially Holden), this is very promising. We have a young FBI agent who has been involved in hostage situations, experiencing a horrible event and deciding he needs to more about the criminal mind. He is incredibly well read in literature and philosophy which actually works against him at times. He goes back to school to study the psychology of criminals. His colleagues seem to tolerate him because they aren't as bright as he is. Ultimately, he hooks up with a man who goes from police department to police department to do in-services on criminal behavior. While in Iowa, he meets a frustrated cop who is looking into the mutilation death of a poor woman and her son. He is not able to offer any solutions to the cop. He knows his limitations. He is almost autistic in his social presence. We now have a case that takes us into the second episode.
It's a slow pilot, true. But it's good
JustHavingALook24 February 2022
I do like the theme exposed right here, in the pilot "can evil be used to do good?" and all the conflicts ensuing, in a changing society.
Acting is a bit slow and unnatural here and there, but dialogues are great.
Really like the conflicts the protagonist has to deal with, even though is rather confusing to understand where he stands .
Not sure if the girlfriend is there for exposition (no voice over narrator after all), to reveal some character's traits of the young agent (since the guy is a bit introvert) or both. Anyway: her presence works well to balance a mostly male world.
Acting is a bit slow and unnatural here and there, but dialogues are great.
Really like the conflicts the protagonist has to deal with, even though is rather confusing to understand where he stands .
Not sure if the girlfriend is there for exposition (no voice over narrator after all), to reveal some character's traits of the young agent (since the guy is a bit introvert) or both. Anyway: her presence works well to balance a mostly male world.
One of the best pilot episodes i have ever seen.
giorgosmmt18 October 2017
The writing and the directing of this episode was excellent.Mindhunter's pilot episode gets you inside the mind of the protagonist and the goals he has, without giving so much attention to his backstory,which is an interesting approach to the main protagonist. Fincher work seems very carefully orchestrated, making it clear that he has put a lot of effort in this one. The one thing that seem irrational to me is the low score this episode has. It definitely doesn't deserve such low rating.
9,5/10
9,5/10
Intense, thrilling and captivating..
akshatdave14 October 2017
Warning: Spoilers
Netflix's often-mesmerizing new FBI profiler series Mindhunter isn't the glum bit of camp that that film was, though as in Seven.The overarching tone here is very much in line with Fincher's own Zodiac (2007), which treated the 1960s/'70s-era case of the California-based Zodiac killer as a soul-crushing puzzle without a satisfying solution. Mindhunter is also a '70s story, set specifically during the time when the FBI's Behavioral Sciences Unit was coming into its own.
This is certainly a compelling beginning, right from the tense scene that introduces us to empathetic young agent Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) as he attempts to defuse a situation involving multiple hostages and a shotgun- toting man off his meds. Groff is immediately persuasive as a person whose raw talent is as much a hindrance as an advantage, and Fincher's surgically precise touch is evident in even tiny details like the police bullhorn that distorts a cop's voice to just the right unnerving degree. (The sound design by Fincher regular Ren Klyce is impeccable throughout both episodes.) The standoff ends in a shockingly gory way, and Holden is consigned, for the most part, to the Quantico classroom where he instructs new agents in the musty ways of an FBI that hasn't much changed since J. Edgar Hoover walked the halls.
A good portion of the first episode is given over to Holden's endearingly cloddish ways with the world at large. Strait-laced in every facet from hairstyle to wardrobe to attitude, he's certainly at a loss when it comes to the post-Woodstock hippies and burgeoning punk rockers defiantly living their lives around him. He even falls in with one of these rebels, Debbie (Hannah Gross), who he meets-cute at a bar, then converses with about French sociologist David Emile Durkheim at an eardrum-shattering hardcore show. Fincher hilariously captions their dialogue in subtitles, a brilliant visual joke that also gets, movingly, at the divides that emerge on many a first date.
Soon enough, Holden is trying pot for the first time, marveling during a movie-night-out at the realism of Sidney Lumet's Dog Day Afternoon (which he later uses, quite brilliantly, as a teaching tool) and being instructed by Debbie in dirty-talk cunnilingus. His real affections, however, lie elsewhere and only blossom after he meets Behavioral Science head Bill Tench (Holt McCallany, an old-reliable supporting player for Fincher and many others, here given a commanding lead role). They're tasked with traveling around the country — location names are splashed in the big blocky text that fills the screen — and instructing local law enforcement in bridging the compassionate gap with criminals. But while on one such assignment, Holden sees an opportunity to further expand their methods by interviewing a known murderer, Edmund (Cameron Britton, as unnerving in his towering well-spokenness as Zodiac's John Carroll Lynch), and noting down his insights.
So Mindhunter reveals itself as a suspense series hinging on after-the- fact investigations into the heads and hearts of known murderers. Not whodunit so much as whydidyou? And in these two episodes, it's never less than engrossing. Fincher has proved time and again that he can make even the most mundane activities and actions riveting. It could be a probing conversation between characters (often edited with the clipped, quick efficiency of a Golden Age screwball comedy), or a simple shot of a jacket slipping off of a chair. The rhythms are so precise that even moments you'd think would land with a thud, such as a time-passing montage scored to the Steve Miller Band's "Fly Like an Eagle," come off as inspired. There's no telling if the series can maintain this level of quality, though Fincher seems much more hands-on here (directing four episodes in total, and helping to pick the helmers — Andrew Douglas, Tobias Lindholm and Asif Kapadia — behind the other six) than he did with Netflix's flagship original House of Cards. So there's reason to hope this tale about the psychology of cut-throats won't too quickly become cut-rate.
This is certainly a compelling beginning, right from the tense scene that introduces us to empathetic young agent Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) as he attempts to defuse a situation involving multiple hostages and a shotgun- toting man off his meds. Groff is immediately persuasive as a person whose raw talent is as much a hindrance as an advantage, and Fincher's surgically precise touch is evident in even tiny details like the police bullhorn that distorts a cop's voice to just the right unnerving degree. (The sound design by Fincher regular Ren Klyce is impeccable throughout both episodes.) The standoff ends in a shockingly gory way, and Holden is consigned, for the most part, to the Quantico classroom where he instructs new agents in the musty ways of an FBI that hasn't much changed since J. Edgar Hoover walked the halls.
A good portion of the first episode is given over to Holden's endearingly cloddish ways with the world at large. Strait-laced in every facet from hairstyle to wardrobe to attitude, he's certainly at a loss when it comes to the post-Woodstock hippies and burgeoning punk rockers defiantly living their lives around him. He even falls in with one of these rebels, Debbie (Hannah Gross), who he meets-cute at a bar, then converses with about French sociologist David Emile Durkheim at an eardrum-shattering hardcore show. Fincher hilariously captions their dialogue in subtitles, a brilliant visual joke that also gets, movingly, at the divides that emerge on many a first date.
Soon enough, Holden is trying pot for the first time, marveling during a movie-night-out at the realism of Sidney Lumet's Dog Day Afternoon (which he later uses, quite brilliantly, as a teaching tool) and being instructed by Debbie in dirty-talk cunnilingus. His real affections, however, lie elsewhere and only blossom after he meets Behavioral Science head Bill Tench (Holt McCallany, an old-reliable supporting player for Fincher and many others, here given a commanding lead role). They're tasked with traveling around the country — location names are splashed in the big blocky text that fills the screen — and instructing local law enforcement in bridging the compassionate gap with criminals. But while on one such assignment, Holden sees an opportunity to further expand their methods by interviewing a known murderer, Edmund (Cameron Britton, as unnerving in his towering well-spokenness as Zodiac's John Carroll Lynch), and noting down his insights.
So Mindhunter reveals itself as a suspense series hinging on after-the- fact investigations into the heads and hearts of known murderers. Not whodunit so much as whydidyou? And in these two episodes, it's never less than engrossing. Fincher has proved time and again that he can make even the most mundane activities and actions riveting. It could be a probing conversation between characters (often edited with the clipped, quick efficiency of a Golden Age screwball comedy), or a simple shot of a jacket slipping off of a chair. The rhythms are so precise that even moments you'd think would land with a thud, such as a time-passing montage scored to the Steve Miller Band's "Fly Like an Eagle," come off as inspired. There's no telling if the series can maintain this level of quality, though Fincher seems much more hands-on here (directing four episodes in total, and helping to pick the helmers — Andrew Douglas, Tobias Lindholm and Asif Kapadia — behind the other six) than he did with Netflix's flagship original House of Cards. So there's reason to hope this tale about the psychology of cut-throats won't too quickly become cut-rate.
A psychology case?
AvionPrince165 December 2021
I loved this episode. I was pretty worried at the beginning and thought that the TV Show wil be an other extravagant police TV show with some stupid jokes and some superficial cases. But this episode when you watched it until the end, it have some interesting cases to follow because it make the psychology the first thing important there and that s why i was so intriguing with this episode. I will love to know more and i kind a like the principal character and the sex scenes was pretty good to see, sorry i needed to say it but this episode was very good in my opinion. What i want now its more case and a more depth in the psychological cases.
Great start
Calicodreamin24 December 2020
Seems like a great show but timeline is fuzzy
kevinmccarthy-3790222 May 2019
Supposed to be 1977,but Holden and his girlfriend go to the theater to see Dog Day Afternoon which was released in 1975. Later when Holden and Tench are driving to Iowa, the song Hold the Line by Toto is playing. That song was released in 1978
Episode 1
bobcobb3018 November 2017
Warning: Spoilers
The pilot for Mindhunters was slow-moving, yet dives right in all at the same time. We are introduced to a devoted lead and after some bizarre dialogue discover that he falls into the same love pitfalls most TV characters do.
They are going for detail with this series, not just snappy one liners and that is a concept I can get behind. This won't be for everyone, but I liked it.
They are going for detail with this series, not just snappy one liners and that is a concept I can get behind. This won't be for everyone, but I liked it.
Great opener
Leofwine_draca13 March 2022
Wow! One of the best opening TV episodes I've ever watched. Had me engrossed from the first moment to the last. Snappy dialogue, a huge amount of depth usually missing from American TV, and equally interesting in both the theory and academic stuff as well as the real-life crime-solving. Some unnecessary sex but that's the only flaw here.
Too Much Forcing of Main Character
tonyhf1 August 2019
Warning: Spoilers
I'm enjoying the show, but I can't help but be distracted by Jonathan Groff's character.
He is a gay broadway actor and it seems they are really forcing you to believe he is straight by having sex multiple times an episode with his gf. It's just blatantly obvious and very distracting.
I'm gay myself, which is probably why it's so distracting and I had never heard of him until I googled during the show. Probably shouldn't have done that. It was just odd how much they were pushing the character in so many sex scenes in one episode.
He seems like a fine actor and don't see the need to see the character pushed into this macho sex machine when he is just not masculine. It made me google him because it seemed so off and I can't be the only one to notice.
Hopefully they push past this in future episodes and just let the actors play their characters.
He is a gay broadway actor and it seems they are really forcing you to believe he is straight by having sex multiple times an episode with his gf. It's just blatantly obvious and very distracting.
I'm gay myself, which is probably why it's so distracting and I had never heard of him until I googled during the show. Probably shouldn't have done that. It was just odd how much they were pushing the character in so many sex scenes in one episode.
He seems like a fine actor and don't see the need to see the character pushed into this macho sex machine when he is just not masculine. It made me google him because it seemed so off and I can't be the only one to notice.
Hopefully they push past this in future episodes and just let the actors play their characters.
Phenomenal
kateAraya7152 September 2019
The best criminal investigation show ever. And I've watched them ALL. The story goes atca perfect pace. They explain the history of psychological investigations without making the audience feel stupid. And you learn a lot. Jonathan Groff- I'm a little in love. After his turn as the original King George in Hamilton- he's changes direction 180° to play Holden. Still uptight but so ready to learn. Just watch. It's fantastic.
But my only problem which is why I gave it a 9 is the girlfriend. Hannah Gross plays Debbie. Wow. I'm not one to try to be a jerk but boy oh boy. Bad acting at its worst. Their scenes together are gut wrenching nails on a chalkboard boring w absolutely no chemistry at all. She sounds like she walked onto a high school play's set for the very first time. Her voice never changes tone. Like a robot. UGGGGHHHHH HORRENDOUS. Pretty happy to see she's not in the second season.
Boring Pilot BUT
binz459 September 2019
Great pilot episode!
mm-3912 July 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Great pilot episode! The seeds to B S U are planted in the opening scene. Holden an F B I hostage negotiator goes by the negotiation playbook and the negotiation goes wrong! Either demoted or, do to procedure the F B I makes Holden an instructor by Sheppard the director of the unit. Holden dismayed by the experiences make Holden want to know what motivates the un balanced mind and is intrigued by a lecture by a professor at the academy. On second watching I notice these little details as the theorist Holden is introduced to the harden/ well educated Bill to go on the road and share ideas with police department on what motivates/behavioral patterns to understand crime. The idea of interviewing the criminal/serial killers which is Holden's idea meets with resistance by Bill, but Holden is given direction on what to do by talking to cop's in California during a seminar. Well written, directed and acted. The story line motive equals crimes makes the viewers wanting more. Best show on Netflix. 9 stars. Hope season is made.
Slow, forced and clunky
jobyknapp1 September 2019
Warning: Spoilers
I understand there is a lot of plot and character development in the pilot episodes, but it feels like it will be a miracle if any of what I just watched will be of any use going forward. I don't know if the main character is good at his job at the FBI or horrible and I don't know what he's trying to do (learn or teach). None of his coworkers seem to appreciate him and he doesn't seem to want to profile a potential subject to help them.
This is the opposite of criminal minds. I wish thes episodes were 30 minutes, bc I'm finding it difficult to invest another hour to see if this turns around.
This is the opposite of criminal minds. I wish thes episodes were 30 minutes, bc I'm finding it difficult to invest another hour to see if this turns around.
Boring !
reaperr13375 July 2022
I rarely dont finish movies or series but this one ... I barely made it through the first episode and literally nothing made me want to watch the next one. 1 hour of endless, nonsense and boring dialogues. I started the second episode but turned it off after 10 min. Basically the wal mart version of true detective.
The worst pilot i've ever seen
davecinemafan-3358226 December 2021
Someone wrote that it was the best pilot of all TV shows. For my part, I would say it's the worst pilot of all TV shows :) It's slow, boring, hard to follow, the script is opaque, the actors fairly neutral. Anyway, I wondered where I was going. Only the David Fincher film-making encouraged me to go further. From the second episode, I understood that it iss a f.....g great TV show !
Start to watching
thorodinson-501307 June 2021
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