There is a reason why Netflix keeps creating crime documentaries. They are huge in terms of viewership and social media buzz. But when you create one about a much-loved sporting superstar, well then the results are even crazier. And that's exactly what they have done with Killer Inside: The Mind Of Aaron Hernandez.
For those of you not familiar with the NFL, Aaron Hernandez was a key player for the New England Patriots. With six Superbowl victories, they are the joint record holders for the most wins in the competition. So playing for them is a big deal. But Aaron Hernadez's story doesn't start there. It begins years earlier when he was a high school superstar who grew up in a strict household ruled by his father Dennis Hernandez. When his father died after routine surgery, Aaron's life started to unravel and the poor choices he would make throughout his life began.
He ditched his deal with Uconn (University of Connecticut) and decided to sign with Florida State. On the field, he was a gifted, model player. His work ethic, commitment, and drive were unquestionable but off the field was a completely different story. He was subject to violent outbursts, smoked weed, hung with a less desirable group of friends and all of this went under the radar. This is well covered in Killer Inside: The Mind Of Aaron Hernandez as a means of explaining the build-up to his biggest crime. With a girlfriend and baby at home, Aaron Hernandez, along with two others, picked up his friend Odin Lloyd, brought him to a local industrial wasteground and murdered him. This was after he had signed a $40 million five year contract with the Patriots.
So what makes a man like Aaron Hernandez, a seemingly normal, all-round decent guy (according to his friends), with a sporting career the rest of can only dream of, go out and murder somebody? That is what the documentary tries to uncover. In a fascinating look at his life, there are plenty of theories discussed. Was he closeted gay and living a lie in perpetual fear of being found out? Did he suffer such sever CET (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy) that he wasn't even capable of making rational choices of decisions? Or maybe he was just a sociopath. Whatever the reason, what we end up with is a lot of unanswered questions. Even those that knew him best are baffled by the turn his life took.
There's a lot to unpack in the three episodes that make up the Killer Inside: The Mind Of Aaron Hernandez documentary. It is a profoundly sad story of a wasted life. But more than that, because it is easy to feel some sort of sympathy for Hernandez, it is a tragedy for Odin Lloyd, his family and friends, as well those close to Hernandez. Why did he do it? We will never really know.
