Until I Kill You is ITV's latest true-crime dramatisation, which stars Shaun Evans (Endeavor, Vigil) and Anna Maxwell Martin (Line of Duty, Ludwig) as killer John Sweeney and nurse Delia Balmer.
The four-part series uses Balmer's memoir Living with a Serial Killer as its window into the real-life crime story. It's a smart choice and one that shifts the focus away from the killer, allowing for one of the women to control the narrative.
Until I Kill You is a mindful piece of television. Following a trend set by other dramas within this genre, such as Netflix's recent Woman of the Hour, it's not particularly interested in digging into back stories or motivations of the perpetrator. It instead points the camera firmly at the emotional and psychological impact on those who were unfortunate enough to come into his orbit.
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It's a good half an hour into the show before John Sweeney is even mentioned. Before that, the mysterious man that Delia met at the pub is simply "John" – his true nature still hidden behind the facade.
We're manoeuvred through key moments in the development of their relationship with the use of time jumps. It's an effective pacing mechanism, keeping the story moving while still allowing enough foundation-building for us to be invested. This is crucial to the understanding of Delia's involvement with John, and a rebuttal to the old and misguided "Why didn't you just leave?" remarks that can often follow survivors around.
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Until I Kill You builds a tense atmosphere that demonstrates a slow shift in their relationship, drip-fed in Sweeney's words and actions.
After the pair's first encounter, Delia orders John out of her apartment over some spilled tea. To an observer it initially seems as though she holds the cards, with John leaving with his tail between his legs.
But as time and their romance progresses, we start to see John's clutches slowly tighten. He is jealous when another man compliments Delia's dress at a party, and then acts out by urinating in the garden, humiliating her in front of her co-workers and friends. After she asks him to move in with her, and he's firmly in her space, he starts to make comments about his "model" ex-girlfriend, making moves to chip away at Delia's confidence.
These intimate scenes, all set within the confines of the walls of Delia's house, make for a claustrophobic and desperate viewing experience.
The end of episode one sees John's mask slip entirely, a full-circle moment that really signifies what has changed between them. While on a night out together he barks at Delia to "sit down" and stop dancing, pushing her to feel self-conscious because "everyone is looking" – let's not forget that it was her free spirit and love of dancing that drew him to her on the night that they had first met.
This escalation in John's treatment of Delia comes to a head in the closing moments of that episode, with John telling her of killing his previous girlfriend and charging at Delia with a knife.
What follows is a truly harrowing depiction of what happened to Delia in the days that followed, but the storytelling largely comes through facial expressions and the use of sound. Until I Kill You utilises carefully curated camera angles and close-up shots that focus the attention on the emotion of the moment, rather than gratuitously reenacting distressing moments of violence.
Not only is this a clever creative decision from an ethical standpoint, but it actually makes for a much more unnerving and terrifying viewing experience.
That being said, Until I Kill You does decide to hold a mirror up to the full extent of the final attack suffered by Delia. It's a tricky balance to be truthful, so as not to sanitise what happened while not veering into gratuitous shocks. We'd argue the ITV drama got this one right, with the moment passing by in a realistic flash and the horrific details then later laid bare in a powerful piece of dialogue. It's only revisited by way of flashbacks, to serve the storytelling and in service to Delia's character.
Until I Kill You gives space to other women surrounding Delia, adding complexity and speaking to the ways in which women share experiences and look out for one another.
Her infuriating encounters with male police officers, which play out while a concerned female officer looks on, further underline what is at play. They also provide a commentary to a more generalised female experience, where our life perspectives are constantly undermined and called into question.
Shaun Evans and Anna Maxwell Martin both get completely lost in their lead roles. Evans' performance has the ability to switch up how you feel about his character with one simple facial expression or line delivery, and Martin brings equal parts vulnerability and strength to survivor Delia.
Until I Kill You might not be an enjoyable or pleasant watch, such is the burden of its subject matter. But as a piece of true-crime drama, it's certainly well crafted.
Until I Kill You airs on ITV1 and ITVX from November 3 - November 6 at 9pm, followed by Until I Kill You: The Real Story documentary on November 7.
TV Editor, Digital Spy Laura has been watching television for over 30 years and professionally writing about entertainment for almost 10 of those. Previously at LOOK and now heading up the TV desk at the UK's biggest TV and movies site Digital Spy, Laura has helped steer conversations around some of the most popular shows on the box. Laura has appeared on Channel 5 News and radio to talk viewing habits and TV recommendations. As well as putting her nerd-level Buffy knowledge to good use during an IRL meet with Sarah Michelle Gellar, Laura also once had afternoon tea with One Direction, has sat around the fire pit of the Love Island villa, spoken to Sir David Attenborough about the world's oceans and even interviewed Rylan from inside the Big Brother house (housemate status, forever pending).
