The Perfect Couple Netflix Series Review

Weddings are meant to be beautiful, not nightmares.

The Perfect Couple is a 2024 Netflix series based on the book by Elin Hilderbrand. On the morning of the big wedding, a body is discovered in the Nantucket Harbor. Foul play is immediately suspected among the guests as the police question everyone involved, putting the day of happiness on hold.

This series had me hooked from the first episode. Wedding dramas plagued with a murder mystery construct a satisfying binge. The Perfect Couple is not your average murder mystery, establishing the characters and their true feelings about each other. Whether you’re a fan of thrillers or intricate family dramas, this series is bound to leave you captivated.

A talented cast was accommodated for The Perfect Couple, with several recognizable actors seen in different media. I found it both interesting and funny to read that some cast members tried to renegotiate with their agents when they had to film a dance in the opening credits!

Nicole Kidman is a talented actress. She delivers a standout performance. Liev Schreiber, Eve Hewson, Billy Hawke, Meghann Fahy, Danna Lynne Champlin, Jack Raynor, and beloved child actress Dakota Fanning are also in the series. The series uses multiple perspectives, a technique I like. There’s never one story happening, especially in murders.

Each character is captivating. The cast studied every minute layer of their character. They’re stereotypical characters you’d see in all murder mysteries, and yet they infuse new traits to avoid copying similar cliches.

Eve Henson shines as the bride-to-be, Amelia, whose journey is essential to the plot. Meghann Fahy channels all the spunk for her character, Merritt, who hides behind a mask. Every character is hiding something.

The best example is Nikki Henry (Champlin), the rookie detective. Any rook character scrambles on the job and just barely solves the case. Champlin changes this circle, playing a somewhat nervous detective, but pays attention to the slightest clues.

The cast laid out their dynamics at the start of filming. The relationships are genuine and each character has an intricate backstory. Relationships are a huge theme in The Perfect Couple. Most (if not all) characters are struggling with their relationships.

What sets The Perfect Couple apart from conventional murder mysteries is its layered storytelling. The script infuses the series with a level of complexity and emotional depth. The narrative peels away the secrets, lies, and buried grievances within the lives of these characters.

Susanne Bier masterfully builds tension in her direction, using flashbacks and multiple perspectives. She allowed audiences to experience the complexity of the character’s relationships while trying to piece together the mystery. The series is an exploration of human frailty and the lengths people go to protect their secrets.

Beach settings are always my favorite. I could spend the whole summer on the beach. The series was filmed in Cape Cod, using Chatham, Harwich, and Nantucket as backdrops. The beach setting is pretty in the series, but not when there’s a murder afoot.

The location also becomes a character to magnify the emotional intensity of the situation. Bier and cinematographers Shane Hurlbut and Roberto De Angelis avoided filming night scenes. They decided that filming during the day enhanced the story’s dark appeal as characters are avoiding secrets.

Each episode of The Perfect Couple is tightly woven ending in a cliffhanger. It made it so tough not to continue on the next episode when it was late at night. This was my favorite Netflix series and I would love to watch it for the first time again. It’s only six episodes long and doesn’t take long to binge.