Summary
- Love & Death depicts the Betty Gore murder in a realistic and chronological manner, emphasizing the "why" rather than creating mystery.
- Candy struck Betty 41 times with an axe, with 28 blows to her head, showcasing the heinous nature of the crime.
- Betty's infant daughter was asleep and unharmed during the murder, highlighting the tragic circ*mstances surrounding the event.
This article contains mention of murder.
discloses some horrific details about the Betty Gore crime scene, raising the question of how accurate the show's depiction of the murder is to the real-life crime. HBO Max's Love & Death is not the first series that attempts to capture the gruesome nature and the tragic circ*mstances of Betty Gore's murder as it follows Candy released a year earlier. What really makes Love & Death's portrayal of true crime stand out is its ensemble cast and attempt to dig deeper into the motives and emotional bearings of the people involved.
Owing to its emphasis on realism, in chronological order. From the inception of Candy's affair to the violent showdown that turns her life upside down, the HBO Max series attempts to walk viewers through all the major milestones that led to the climactic Betty Gore crime scene. Even when it comes to the actual murder, Love & Death gets close to many details of the crime without sensationalizing or justifying it.
Related
Staying true to real events, Love & Death's ending highlights all the courtroom details that led to the final verdict of the Candy Montgomery trial.
6 Betty's Axe Murder Took Place On Friday The 13th
A Newspaper With A Poster From The Shining Was Also Left Open
Candy Montgomery killed Betty Gore on June 13, 1980, which incidentally happened to be a Friday. Considering the sudden nature of the crime and how it ensued, its date falling on Friday the 13th was likely coincidental. Strangely, investigators had also discovered a newspaper at Betty Gore's place, opened at a poster featuring The Shining. Given how Nicholson's character chases his wife with an axe in The Shining, it seems like another coincidental detail of the murder that somehow happened to have a semblance of synchronicity with the crime.
While Hulu's Candy emphasizes the fact that the murder happened on Friday the 13th and even features many shots focusing on the newspaper ad for The Shining at Betty's home, HBO's Love & Death seems to intentionally gloss over these details. Unlike Candy, Love & Death follows a linear storyline and focuses less on creating mystery and intrigue surrounding the murder. Therefore, instead of shedding light on the "how" and "what" of the true crime, it highlights the "why."
5 Candy Struck Betty 41 Times With An Axe
Police Initially Thought Someone Shot Betty In The Face
According to reports, Candy struck Betty 41 times with an axe, out of which 28 were on her head. The condition of her head initially led to the assumption that she was shot. However, wounds on her face, head, hands, arms, torso, and legs later confirmed that an axe was used to kill her. Her body was first discovered in her home's utility room by the neighbors, who then informed her husband, Allan Gore, and reported the crime to relevant authorities.
HBO's Love & Death only features the actual murder in the form of flashbacks and avoids weighing on how many times Candy struck Betty. However, using flashbacks and flash-forwards, it shows Candy had a bout of uncontrollable anger during the confrontation, which suggests that her actions were a lot more impassioned than she realized. The HBO Max show also drops glimpses of the Betty Gore crime scene and the injuries she had sustained to give viewers a rough idea of the heinous nature and seriousness of the crime.
Related
What Happened To The Real Candy Montgomery
Since Love & Death only reveals the events leading to Candy Montgomery's crime in its first three episodes, here's a breakdown of what happened next.
4 Betty's Daughter Was Asleep At Home At The Time Of The Murder
The Baby Was Left Unharmed
As accurately depicted in Love & Death, Betty's infant daughter, Bethany, was at home sleeping in her crib during the murder. She was later found by the neighbors when they showed up to investigate the house at Allan's request. Reportedly, Bethany was unharmed but had stayed unattended almost throughout the day since the neighbors showed up at the house at night.
One of the neighbors even recalled (via The Dallas Morning News) how before he found the "bloody mess" in the utility room, he saw the baby crying in her crib after not being "fed or nothing" all day. The two daughters left Texas after their mother's murder and moved to Kansas after Allan lost custody of the girls to Betty's parents. Alisa graduated from high school in 1992 and went to Kansas State University for college. Bethany grew up to be a teacher like her mother (via Ready Steady Cut).
3 Candy Sustained Injuries To Her Head And Toe
The Injuries Hint Betty Got In At Least Two Blows
According to Candy Montgomery's account of the murder, she had gone to Betty's house to pick up Betty's older daughter's swimsuit since she was staying at the Montgomery home for a sleepover. When she arrives at Betty's place, Betty questions Candy about her affair with Allan. Candy testified that instead of denying it, she came clean and assured Betty they had called it off long ago. However, Betty did not take Candy's confession too well and tried to hit her with an axe retrieved from her garage.
The two had an intense back and forth during which the axe hit Candy's head and her left foot's middle toe. Candy testified she proceeded to strike Betty in an attempt to defend herself after eventually gaining control over the axe. Staying true to Candy's recollection of the crime, Love & Death walks through all the moments from Betty's confrontation to her swinging the axe onto Candy's toe. However, the show only hints at how Candy's emotions got the best of her as she went on to strike Betty 41 times with the axe.
2 Candy Attempted To Clean The Crime Scene Before Giving Up
Candy Seemingly Started Cleaning The Bloody Mess
The crime scene made it look like Candy had started cleaning up the blood inside Betty Gore's home but eventually gave up after realizing there was too much of it. Since Love & Death jumps ahead to Candy leaving Betty's house after their initial confrontation, it does not reveal what she did right after killing Betty. However, by highlighting traces of blood all over Betty's home, Love & Death hints that Candy was in a state of panic and might have even attempted to clean the crime scene.
Since she couldn't get it cleaned up as she planned, she left the house a bloody mess. This was still the state of the house when Lester Gaylor and Richard Parker, two of Betty's neighbors, showed up to find Betty's dead body. Allan Gore had called them and was worried that he couldn't get in touch with Betty and when they found her, they called him. Gaylor called it the most horrific thing he ever witnessed (via Sportskeeda).
1 Candy Rinsed Blood Off Herself In Betty's Bathroom After The Murder
Candy Wanted To Get The Blood Off Her Body
A recurring motif in Love & Death features a terrifying image of Betty Gore's shower with blood marks on the walls surrounding it. This scene seems to indicate that Candy washed the blood off herself at Betty's place before she went back home and changed into fresh clothes. As horrific as it may seem, this Love & Death scene, too, is based on real accounts of the murder since reports suggest she took a fully clothed shower in Betty's bathroom to get rid of the bloody remains of the crime.
Montgomery testified during the trial that she took a shower and then left, also admitting under oath that she heard the baby crying upstairs and left her there alone for the entire day as well. She then testified that she went home, changed into fresh clothes, and went to church to attend Bible school. Betty's oldest daughter was even at the Bible school class, and Montgomery said nothing of her actions before having lunch with friends. Despite all this, the jury found her innocent of the murder.
How Hulu's Candy Handled Betty Gore's Death Compared To Love & Death
The Betty Gore crime scene in Love & Death is recreated based on Candy's own testimony of the event, and the same approach is taken in the previous true-crime miniseries on the topic, Candy. In both Love & Death and Candy, the scene plays out through a flashback as Candy testifies in court and features nearly identical aspects, including Candy apologizing to Betty and placing a hand on her shoulder before Betty initiates the altercation.
While both versions of the event depict Candy's assertion that she initially acted in self-defense, they show her losing control and brutally attacking Betty in the end. In terms of the actual murder, Candy's is much less graphic as it uses quick cuts, hiding the gore for the most part. Love & Death is disturbingly graphic, showing the brutal ax hits. Another key aspect differentiating Candy is that Betty appears almost as a spirit watching Candy's testimony and responding, "That's your story," hinting her version is different. It gives Betty a voice when only Candy's side is being told.
Other Aspects That Love & Death Doesn't Totally Get Right Or Completely Changes
It is tough to know what was real and what was made up in Love & Death since the TV series is based on one woman's testimony, and no one else was there to see what really happened during Betty Gore's murder. At least in Candy, there is a hint that Betty might have a different story of her death than what Candy said while she was on trial for murder. As with most biopics, things are changed, and there is a warning that "Dialogue, scenes, and some events have been modified or created for dramatic purposes."
This is actually the third adaptation of the axe murderer case, with A Killing in a Small Town released in 1990 as a CBS made-for-TV movie being the first. With that in mind, it is interesting to see how Candy and Love & Death have almost identical moments, making it seem that both are using research from the same source and not making things up on their own. That source is Jim Atkinson and John Bloom’s book, Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs.
Thanks to David E. Kelley, Love & Death makes the characters feel like real people, and he refuses to sensationalize the killer and make her evil. However, this also caused some changes, none of which were major. The series added scenes that painted Candy in a sympathetic light, and there was even a moment where Betty triggered a childhood memory by "shushing" her that never actually happened or was told in testimony. However, one reason changes had to be made was because Candy wouldn't talk to journalists.
According to Elizabeth Olsen, "I really have a respect for someone who draws such a hard line after such a national story to have never done an interview after the fact. Besides participating in Evidence of Love, she hasn’t done a single interview since the trial. I can appreciate why someone would want their anonymity and privacy, even though we’re evading it by making the show” (via THR). In the end, minor changes were made to humanize Candy and Betty, making Love & Death a better, thought-provoking viewing experience.
Sources: The Dallas Morning News
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Based on the true story and the book that chronicled it titled Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs by Jim Atkinson and John Bloom, Love & Death is a crime drama created for HBO Max. Elizabeth Olsen stars as Candy Montgomery, a Wylie, Texas housewife accused of the murder of her friend, Betty Gore, in 1980.
- Cast
- Elizabeth Olsen , Jesse Plemons , Patrick Fugit , Lily Rabe , Keir Gilchrist , Elizabeth Marvel , Tom Pelphrey , Krysten Ritter
- Release Date
- April 27, 2023
- Seasons
- 1
- Network
- HBO Max
- Directors
- Lesli Linka Glatter
