Ragnarfan's Blog

This review contains spoilers.

11. Birth

This week on American Horror Story, it seems like everyone in the house has baby fever. Well, to be fair, they’ve always had baby fever, but it has really kicked up several notches this week, because guess who is getting out of the mental hospital? (Hint: it’s Vivien!)

Oh yes, Viv and her twin babies are closer than ever, and everyone in the house is looking forward to the blessed event, from sweet, pining 30′s grief monger Nora to everyone’s favorite gay ghosts, Chad and Patrick. Even Hayden shows up to get in on the baby brawl, and she doesn’t even like Vivien; she just wants to own that little piece of Ben. Fortunately, the house has a couple of protectors, namely Constance (who will not let Chad and Patrick touch her grandchild), Billie Dean (Sarah Paulson) the psychic, and the Harmon’s oldest daughter, Violet.

As it turns out, Billie Dean believes there is a way to rid the home of ghosts, but she needs help. Between Violet and the ever-helpful Tate, there just might be enough will to get some of the home’s occupants sent away for good, but will it be in time to protect Vivien and Ben’s offspring? Is there a way to banish ghosts from unlife, or is everyone stuck there forever?

More importantly, what would the house do with babies even if it got them? Chad’s plan is vicious and selfish, but not entirely evil. Well, it is evil, but not evil, and if Billie is to be believed, evil is what makes Murder House Murder House. Does this have something to do with the Infantata, or is Basement Baby a symptom of the house, rather than the cause?

One of the things you have to admire about AHS is that they give people what they want. The fans want crazy? They get crazy. The actors want scenes together? They get scenes together. Jessica Lange and Zachary Quinto went to the writers and asked for a scene where sassy Chad faces off with Constance in full bore queen bitch mode, and boy, they got what they wanted and then some. This was one of the better character exchanges in quite some time, and one in which the cattiness was through the roof. Credit to Tim Minear (Firefly, AHS’s Halloween Part 2) for his ear for dialog this week.

Also a stand out this week was the direction of Alfonso Gomez-Rejon. Primarily known for Glee, this might be his best work, if only because it’s the only bit of his work I’ve seen as a primary director. (For the record, he also did Home Invasion earlier this year, and that was another excellent episode.) He just has a way with the camera, and the finale of tonight’s episode was one of the most beautiful final few minutes I’ve seen on television. The whole birth scene was shot very well, and the aftermath was handled beautifully and with grace, which is a bit surprising given the creepy rawness of the show’s cold opening scare.

It’s hard to believe we’ve only got one more episode left of American Horror Story, isn’t it? It seems like only yesterday the pilot blew my mind, and the show hasn’t stopped being utterly crazy through and through this entire time. Every week, there’s something new and different happening, some new aspect of the show to enjoy, from Jessica Lange’s incredible performance as Constance to the emergence of youngster Taissa Farmiga in her first major role. The special effects have been stellar, the scares have been numerous, the suspense plentiful, and the twists are off the charts. For entertainment value alone, this show has been brilliant. The incredible performances only sealed the deal.

American Horror Story has been the best show of the 2011 TV season, and it’s not even close. The hard part will be matching this quality next year, because there’s no possible way Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk top what we’ve been given this year.

Rating : 10/10

source:denofgeek.com
by:ronhogan

This review contains spoilers.

10. Smoldering Children

When you live next door to a house full of ghosts, it makes it difficult to escape your past. For Constance Lange, whose past includes numerous nefarious deeds, it may be the thing she didn’t do that gets her into trouble for all the things she’s done.

In case you missed last week, Constance’s boyfriend Travis has become The Boy Dahlia, and he’s a major story. Looks like Travis got the fame he’s always wanted: it’s just a shame that he has to be in pieces in a ditch in South Central to accomplish it. Still, the LAPD needs a patsy, and they turn to the most likely suspect: Constance.

This basically allows American Horror Story to start to do a little story wrap-up with Constance and her various exploits. Thanks to guest star Charles S Dutton as a detective, we get a laundry list of all the dead people who Constance has been associated with. The story starts with Beau, then hits Tate, and finally ends up on Moira and Hugo.

The DA apparently nearly charged Constance with their murders, as Constance’s story about the two running off together didn’t quite add up. As Constance’s lawyer warns her, they want her for something, and if they can pin Travis on her, so much the better. Any excuse to get into Constance’s past is a good one, since that woman is a mess, and Jessica Lange is an incredible actress.

Of the many flashbacks this week, the show’s opening 1994 segment with Tate, Constance, and Larry seems to be the most effective and interesting (if only because we finally get the truth about Larry’s french-fried face).

Tate, like Violet, is a teenager from the school of “let’s be as cruel as possible to our parents/parental figures as a way of getting back at them for things beyond our control.” Meanwhile, Larry and Constance, in both happy times and currently, are always a great pair. Granted, Constance’s humoring of Larry in 1994 is pretty obvious, but Larry was and is a man in love, and men in love can do stupid things. After Larry’s borderline cameo last week, we get a lot of the L man this week, and it’s always good to see his slimy, pathetic, burned face, even if it looks like he won’t be around much longer.

This week was heavy on people not Ben or Vivien, which makes up for last week’s Ben-centric episode.

Ben’s few moments are effective enough – particularly his half-naked brawl – but this week’s Harmon is Violet, and that poor girl goes through the ringer. As Violet tries to flee the house again and again and again, director Michael Lehmann (Heathers, Hudson Hawk, Airheads) pulls out all the classic horror tricks (jump cuts, Dutch angles, shakycam) to really amp up the tension.

I’m not terribly crazy about Tate and Violet’s Romeo and Juliet storyline, but it’s well written thanks to writer James Wong’s experienced hand (The X-Files, Final Destination), and both young actors are really growing on me, Taissa Farmiga especially. (He also handles the police procedural aspect of Constance’s storyline very well, which isn’t a surprise to anyone familiar with his work in the past.)

Despite knowing what’s going to happen, sometimes for weeks, the show is still very tense, and that’s a big credit to the production crew. They know what tricks to use, when to use them, and how often to use them to keep them effective. This is a well-made show from a visual standpoint, if nothing else. The special effects this week were especially top notch. I particularly enjoyed the return of the asynchronous editing and the return of the Dutch angle.

There are only two more episodes left of the first season of American Horror Story. After that, if you believe creator Ryan Murphy, we’ll be moving locations and finding a new haunted house (or some kind of thing) with a new family of unlucky folks.

While that’s really unusual in American television, I’ve watched enough imported British shows and mini-series for it not to bother me. In fact, it might be nice to have a new show next year. It might be nice to get a fresh start and not have to worry about holdovers, even if that does mean we won’t get any Larry or Constance anymore.

Maybe next year we can follow Marcy the realtor around! That’s a show I’d love to see. Even if you change houses, Marcy can continue to be the unluckiest real estate agent ever. I hear there’s a nice house in Amityville, New York, that could use a family…

Rating : 9/10

source:denofgeek.com
by :ronhogan