User reviews

Jesse Plemons is a very underrated actor. He never fails to deliver a good performance. He is not as good as Elizabeth Olsen, but he is good. Elizabeth Olsen is fantastic. Her range is great and she makes this character very believable and sympathetic. Every time she is on screen it's hard to look away. Whatever she does is interesting. Is this the year she wins her well deserved Emmy? This performance could be the difference.

Like every other show from HBO, the visuals are amazing. The sets and the visual effects are spotless. Even if you find the story uninteresting I'm sure you could watch this show just because it's so beautiful to look at.

Three episodes in, and I am hooked on the show. I will certainly keep watching.

Elizabeth Olsen is just delightful and within this particular role she plays a wide range of emotions. This is her best acting work of her career.

The supporting characters are also outstanding. Krysten Ritter steals every scene she's in and Lilly Rabe plays so well perhaps one of the most dislikable female characters ever written, Betty. Neurotic is an understatement, and her intense neuroses undermines her marriage.

Candy (Liz Olsen), is charismatic and socially confident, a true pillar of womanhood within her social circles. Incredibly friendly, even flirty, and nearly impossible not to like. She seemingly has everything, but she wants more. She seeks intimacy, a connection, something beyond marriage that will fill her heart. But there's trouble brewing in paradise because someone she loves "shushes" her and her emotional slide begins.

I think this program would have been good no matter who played the starring role. Based on a true story, great acting, directing, cinematography, and music. I loved the music.

But I agree with other reviewers here at IMDB, I can never take my eyes off the screen when Elizabeth Olsen is on. I've only seen her in Avenger movies, Wandavision, and now this. She even plays a bad person in this. But still, she is gorgeous and a great actress. She has star power.

I binge watched all the episodes from beginning to end. I was riveted. I don't see how it could have been done any better.

10 out of 10 for me.

It's not Law and Order but it is taken from actual events which you might not believe until you see the credits. It is one of those series that sucks you in from the very start a n d does not disappoint. For reference if you have seen it ,Under the Banner of Heaven would be a good comparison and that series was just as good as this one. Elizabeth Olsen will just blow you away with the way she just becomes the character. The writing, acting and direction and performances are absolute top notch. Ask yourself how much time and effort do you put into finding 'content' worth watching ?

HBO, now MAX ,doesn't drop a complete series all at once which I didn't realize when I first started watching this one and when I had to wait for the next episode, I couldn't wait.

Did nobody see that? Because the reviews and ratings on this one suggests the world has no idea it was made just last year. If anything this seems like a dumbed down version of it.

Nothing against the actors, but I don't get why HBO decided to re-make a year old show, that was quite well done in the first place.

I won't give details, or review Candy here. But, if anyone has not seen it already, better watch it first.

There should be enough stories around, for companies as large as HBO to make a series. Is there some politics here, I don't know? Someone involved in the case wanted another version, maybe?

But yes, Candy!

Based on the true story of '1980 Axe Murder Case' of Betty Gore, Love & Death is totally driven by Olsen's riveting performance.

A second adaptation of the incident (following Hulu's Candy starring Jessica Biel), Love & Death felt a bit overstretched with 7 episodes, instead 5 episodes seemed enough to cover the whole story of the incident that took place on that fateful Friday.

Refraining from the fact that whether the storytelling was apt or we can sympathize with the culprit for the heinous act she did, Love & Death is still an intriguing exposure of a human psyche and what it deals with, directed in a docu-series style with an amazing performance by Elizabeth Olsen.

My Rating : 7.5/10.

10 thousand times better than Wicker Tree that I just finished on starz avoid that movie! Anyway this is really good I even watched Candy on Hulu I'm pretty sure that was last year so this is similar I'd say Love & Death is even better. Elizabeth Olsen is most known in the marvel universe and I very much enjoy her in Ingrid Goes West. Been meaning to watch this mini series a couple months I just kept having health complications, lately I've finally felt amazing this is amazing too all around with directing, astonishing acting and intriguing throughout. On top of everything else this great mini series about Candy, affairs and crimes is nominated for a couple Emmy's, I love catching up on worthy nominees.

I couldn't figure out why it felt like I had seen this before until it dawned on me that this is the same story covered by Candy. So far I think I liked Candy better because Jessica Biel is always so captivating, but the previews for Love and Death look like it will go into the aftermath whereas Candy didn't (if I remember correctly). This is a slow burn so far, but the acting is great - especially Elizabeth Olsen. I find her captivating to watch, too. I appreciate that the sex aspect wasn't really focused on as much, it feels more realistic than salacious that way. This really is a story about relationship dynamics and the focus is represented appropriately. I look forward to seeing the rest and will update my rating after it is complete.

First off, I am a bit impressed and encouraged by television offerings lately. ...Well okay, two or three series come immediately to mind.

Love & Death is one of them.

At first, my husband and I weren't too interested in watching this perhaps because neither of us knew much about the case it is based on. After seeing it pop up as a choice a few times, however, we figured 'what the heck', and began watching. While parts of Episode 1 actually felt a bit "icky" (for lack of a better term), I am so glad we stuck with it, and by the next day, I couldn't wait to get home in order to to pick up where we had left off at episode three.

To begin, the soundtrack at least for the first half or more of the series, is a MASTERFUL collection of tunes from the 70's and 80's, and which work perfectly to add to the feeling that you are watching this dark series unfold firsthand. In fact, IMO, the only thing within Love & Death that rivals how excellent the music is for most of the first few episodes, is how exceptional Elizabeth Olsen is in her riveting portrayal of Candy Montgomery. That is not to say that rest of the cast's acting was not top-notch or that the rest of the series is not good, it is just difficult not to notice how much Elizabeth Olsen stands far and above here. This Elizabeth Olsen is tiers from the one you may have seen in anything else. To say her range is incredible, would be an understatement. Not too far behind in accolades, should be Lily Rabe who it was nice to see again, and who also wonderfully, convincingly, and definingly portrays the role of Betty Gore. Jesse Plemons as a love interest is the only casting choice I found a bit problematic.

In as far as the story, it unfolds ... engagingly. What's funny (strange), not funny (haha), is that while the episodes are an hour long, each felt much longer. This normally happens when something isn't paced well or isn't interesting enough to keep one's full attention, but neither was the case here. The series, which revolves around what occured before and after a certain true-life incident, is both compelling and flows well.

A recommended watch.

7.4 / 10, but a 7 just seemed too low.

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Encouraged by reviews here which mentioned the Hulu version, we thought: "GREAT! Something BETTER than Love & Death?!? Let's see it!" Well ... don't fall for the hype. It was very nonlinear, and quite dull, both in color and story progression.

I understand not all the episodes are out for Love & Death however, seeing Candy before hand starring Jessica Biel, Candy takes the cake. Love and death seems to drag through the story but also missing some vital factors that could add to the story. I absolutely love and adore Elizabeth Olsen, she has done a fantastic job, she has captured my attention from the start, however just learning more about Candy as a real person as well as how she was portrayed in candy, she just doesn't seem like a good fit. They got the affair down just fine but I wanted more emotional background, a little more into the psychological unraveling from both parties. Again maybe I wanted this show to be more like Candy and maybe there is a lot more to come I haven't seen yet but this just seemed like a duller retelling of this true story.

My mother converted away from the Methodist to nondenominational Christianity because she called the Methodist Church a "dead church." Well, Mom must never have visited Candy Montgomery's Methodist church because there was a whole lot of something going on! I was fascinated by the sets and costumes and the series gets a lot right. The music department sets the scene with disco hits from the era, but no country music is played. Wouldn't the soundtrack of Texas at the time include Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers or Eddie Rabbit? It's as if the production department has no real interest or ability to capture the scene or humanize the characters; it's kind of a melodrama in a groovy wax museum.

Elizabeth Olson is pitch perfect here as the restrained yet unhinged Candy. The awkward "affair" plays out in fits and starts, yet I can't imagine someone as beautiful as Elizabeth Olson settling for tacky motel rooms in real life. Candy's joyful sensuality seems to be contrasted with Betty's (her romantic rival) rigid views of sex. A scene where Betty forbids her daughter from trick-or-treating dressed as a pink lady from Grease reveals the character to be a ticking time bomb. I'm only three episodes in and I know the series is building momentum to an explosive conclusion.

The series is weird and interesting. Elizabeth Olson is a leading lady who can carry a show and she has a lot of talent to back her up. I wish Kristen Ritter had more to do here than play a supporting friend to Candy. Her noncommittal "cool" disco dance was unforgettable and a perfect contrast to Candy's crazed freestyle dancing in a rare dance scene.

Why in the world did HBOMax decide they had to make the exact same movie that Hulu did less than a year ago? And who decided to make the women have hairstyles not even close to 1978-1980...Olsen looks like she just stepped out of the make up trailer onto the set and her friend with the red hair was distracting...she looked like a bad 1970's hooker...Not that Olsen isn't a good actress but I think Jessica Beal captured the real Candy much better. It's slow and plodding and didn't need to be 8 episodes...but for some strange reason hollywood has zero original ideas anymore and needs to just keep recycling the same garbage over and over. It's a mess and simply didn't need to be made.

I have seen both series on this incident and they each have their merits and flaws. The Hulu series entitled Candy, starring Jessica Biel, is the story told as if the protagonist is Betty, and she is an innocent victim of another woman's rage. Whereas Love and Death, on HBO Max, starring Elizabeth Olsen, is told as if the protagonist is Candy, who suffered an attack at the hands of an troubled and mentally unstable woman.

Both resent the same facts, bent to fit the needs of the protagonist.

In my opinion, the HBO series is much better. I found the characters much more likeable and the way the story is told, to be much more engaging.

Not to mention the beautiful sets and wardrobe that brought me right back to the 70's in tone and look.

Jesse Plemons once again puts in a stunning performance, as does Lily Rabe, herself a veteran of difficult, and well done performances.

Not to mention the beautiful framing with the axe, Betty's legs in the foreground and Candy in the background. Easily could have been the background for the title card.

2 episodes in and I'm digging it. Late 70s and early 80s setting is always fun and Elizabeth Olsen is giving another great performance. She's incredibly underrated as an actress. People just see her as her Marvel character and don't realize she has put in some great work in other films (checkout Wind River for example). She's very talented and I look to see her start getting bigger roles in future high level dramas. She's on track to become the next highly decorated (awards wise) actress of the era. She gives me Frances McDormand vibes which I think is a tremendous compliment considering she's one of the best ever (alongside Streep, Benning, Amy Adams, Keaton, Bates, etc etc).

Everyone else has been solid as well including Jesse Plemons who again shows that he's one of the top character actors of modern times. The guy pops up everywhere and he always gives a strong performance. He's on a wonderful run of roles and continues to quietly build a resume that shows he's a great actor. Not bad for a kid from Texas who started out on Friday Night Lights because he actually had experience playing Texas high school Football and they needed someone for context on set. I think he's trying to become this generations Phillip Seymour Hoffman which is fantastic as he's one of my favorite actors ever.

The performances of those two will keep me entertained and so far they are executing the storyline of this true crime character study wonderfully. I highly recommend.

HBO has now rebranded as "MAX" for some idiotic reason and have been the joke of the PR world for this misstep, but I have got to hand it to them- Love&Death is a true winner.

The stellar production quality is on par with what the network previously know as HBO has always been known for...

It's whimsical and dramatic with a little suspense tied in.

Elizabeth Olsen shines, she's such a gem and this was her best work.

Minus two stars only because they could've done a little more editing to trim the fat. The pace could be much more enjoyable had this been 6 episodes.

There were some unnecessary down times that weren't needed (why did they even show the Kentucky funeral scene, or long talks between candy & pat at the end in the middle of the exciting trial?)

However the story is fascinating and this cast did brilliant at conveying one of the most famous trials of the century.

This show is good. But I'm sorry Elizabeth Olsens portrayal compares nothing to Jessica Biels. She's a great actress but I just didn't believe her to be the real person like Jessica Beil. Other than that a good show. But if you haven't watched Jessica Biel then you're missing out. She even looked like the original candy.

I feel like this could be great if she put more into the character. Just feels like they just had her change her accent a little and that's it.

She didn't even have Candys hair and glasses. It's a completely different person. Idk just took me out of it whenever they showed her.

All of the acting is so good and this has so much nuance, something missing in so many shows & movies nowadays.

The subtleties leading up to the intense outcome of this true story definitely make it a slow burn but in a very good way.

Elizabeth Olsen is mesmerizing in this. I always thought she was beautiful but in this she really shows her acting chops and for some reason is even more attractive in this role as a lonely housewife than many of her other roles. I'm glad that she looked more natural and didn't have a bad perm. It doesn't take away from the story at all in fact it just makes it feel more realistic.

Jesse Plemons shines in this as well. His awkwardness is palpable but you also kind of like him and feel bad for him at times.

That's how you can tell it's good acting; when you like the characters even though they are very flawed people.

If you've seen all three of the movie versions of the story (1980's TV movie A Murder In A Small Town with Barbara Hershey, Hulu's Candy with Jessica Biel, and HBO's Love And Death with Elizabeth Olsen), you've started to notice as I have that every story is just like the other one. The small details, the backstory lines, even bits of dialogue are virtually identical. That's not just because they're all based on the same book, but apparently the screenwriters are too lazy to add their own touches to it. So you'll notice literally copy-and-paste dialogue from a version over forty years ago in this most recent version. I'm not sure what Hollywood's fascination with Candy Montgomery is, but she isn't worth three different movies by three different actresses, all literally re-telling the same story with the same dialogue.

I wish I had skipped "Candy" and only seen this version of the story. Elizabeth Olsen is absolutely stellar and much more believable than Biel as Candy. Same goes for Jesse Plemmons. The other version of Pat is the goofy Jonah guy from Veep and I just couldn't take him seriously. But above all, Love & Death handles the timeline and the building of the story much more effectively. Candy jumps all over the place and in doing so we don't get a good sense of the characters. In Love & Death you see how it all plays out, almost linearly, and it works much better as a story. Candy focuses on Betty more, which u felt was missing a bit in L&D but it was sacrificed for less focus on Candy and that's where the money is, imo. Elizabeth Olsen nails her performance even without speaking. Her facial expressions and mannerisms are done so well, she is 100% believable. She builds this tension between being good & simple, and being complex and potentially evil. It's a masterful performance and I hope she gets recognition for it.

I like how Love & Death camouflages as anything but a true crime series for the first few episodes (other than the flashforward we see at the start of the series, of course). Yes, it's supposed to set up the antecedent to the unfortunate incident and build up the story, but the series just has a lighter and less unsettling tone than when the conflict sets in motion. I think it gives the subsequent events a little bit more shock value and embodies the suddenness with which things change for Candy Montgomery.

I love the fact that the series is a slow-burner, every piece of the story fits snuggly in the narrative and plot points are ironed out properly.

If I ever doubted Elizabeth Olsen's acting prowess, having only seen her in one other role so far, those doubts are far out the window by now. She undoubtedly shines in this show and brings a certain eeriness to the character. The funny part is, you're not scared of Candy. She's just a mysterious character whose mind you want to get inside of. You can't expect anything less than quality from such an ensemble cast; everybody else pretty much delivers in their respective roles.

The production value of the show is evident in almost everything (HBO, duh); the quality writing, cinematography, beautifully detailed dated sets and costumes, and even the soundtrack. There's a lot to like about this adaptation. Feel free to satisfy your true-crime appetite with this one.

Bigger budget doesn't equate to better quality.

I'll reiterate what's been shared in previous reviews.

Hulu's version is just better. HBO's production value usually delivers. But in this particular case... I couldn't even finish the first episode. Furthermore, A Killing in a Small Town with Barbara Hershey is still better than HBO's version. At least with what they had to work with at the time. But Candy's Biel and Lynskey have incomparable on screen chemistry. The casting in Hulu's Candy is also exceptional. The actors mirrored the real life characters, which further added to suspending my disbelief. In the end it comes down to personal preference I suppose.

Five stars for budget and effort. Unfortunately fell flat for me, personally.