Into the Deep True Crime Documentary Review, Peter Madsen’s Submarine Murder

What Into the Deep is all about without spoiling the show

In the most simplest explanation, Into the Deep is a one-part documentary film about an inventor who murders a woman on a submarine. Into the Deep tells the story in a unique way. The murderer, Peter Madsen, was already being filmed around the time the murder took place. Rather than an after-the-fact telling of the story, we get plenty of raw footage of how the crime took place and the obvious signs that something wasn’t right.

When you finish watching this one, you’re going to wonder how someone so openly dark never showed other clearer signs that something terrible was going to happen.

Did you know anything about the Into the Deep story before watching?

The story was brand new to me. Despite being only a few years old, this wasn’t a particularly huge news story in America. The murder takes place in Denmark, a place kind of off the radar for me. I know it has a Little Mermaid statue. Other than true crime fans of the time, many people probably aren’t familiar with Madsen or his crime.

Will Into the Deep make people feel uncomfortable?

Into the Deep is uncomfortable in a different kind of way from some other true crime documentaries. The descriptions of what Madsen does to the victim, Kim Wall, are quite horrific. Scenes depicting his potential psychopathic nature come across far more terrifying after knowing what he was about to do. It will make your skin crawl in the way the murderer was capable of far more evil than what he was actually convicted with. Fortunately, he was caught.

What was good about Into the Deep?

Aside from being mostly in English despite taking place in a foreign country–something I appreciate as I tend to work while watching many documentaries–there are some other qualities that made this a very good film. There are sit-down moments with people who were involved but they seem to take place mostly in real time and less after the trial.

A lot of true crime documentaries tend to have a lack of footage prior to a crime taking place. Those that can offer some insight pre-crime, like Tiger King, have an advantage over others. We get to see the true nature of a person. In the case of Into the Deep, Madsen is caught off guard many times. We get to see how he interacts with people and how volatile he can behave. He talks about killing people in a nonchalant way. It almost feels fake at times. This one was as real of a documentary as you can make. Madsen hasn’t committed the murder yet when a lot of the footage was shot. Clearly, from his behavior and word choice, he already has it planned.

What could have made Into the Deep better?

The structure of the documentary relied heavily on the real time footage but had little more about what happened after the trial. There may simply not be much more to cover. It’s clear, from plenty of video footage and a final rant by Madsen, how “off” he seems to be.

This is the type of documentary that could have a spinoff. Madsen seems intrigued by the idea of killing someone. He could be someone to talk openly in the future about the dangers in his head. I would welcome a documentary like this although the style would be much different.

Is Into the Deep worth watching?

Admittedly, I didn’t have many expectations for this going into it. The premise of killing someone inside of a submarine doesn’t seem particularly unique other than the setting. However, this is far more than that simple plot point.

Into the Deep’s villain is about as intriguing as they come. His egotistical personality makes him a fascinating study. This is more the story about a man trying to live out a sick fantasy than anything else. It is definitely worth a watch. Into the Deep is layered. There is more to dive into–no pun intended.

Overall Score: 8 out of 10

There seems to be some elements they could touch on further. It can be forgotten how Madsen was once a well-respected inventor capable of doing some great things. Instead, his sick fantasies got the better of him. Maybe one day we learn the full story of what really happened.

Interested in watching Into the Deep or learning more about the case? Below you will find affiliate links to the series as well as other information about this case. By using this links, I may receive a small commission of any purchase you may make.

Watch Into the Deep on Netflix

Watch The Submarine Killer: Confessions of a Murderer on Amazon

If you have a series or film you want to know my opinion on, please leave a comment below. I may have already written about it. I can save you some time from watching a dud.