Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:21am
Also, Jordan, I think it's intentional homage. I mean the carpet is basically the same as the Shining and you've got the creepy twins. He did it too with Halloween in Freak Show. I'm sure there are more, but I don't watch enough horror to know.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:23am
Anal rape by metal and ghosty thing will terrify me in the dark tonight.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:26am
Well I do watch enough horror to know that it's not an "homage", it's more of his blatant ripping off that the kids call an "homage" because they don't know what he's ripping off so it's easier to say he's paying tribute than to admit the truth, that he's a lazy filmmaker with no original ideas of his own.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:27am
And don't worry, Phyllis. That sharp dildo he ripped off, sorry, "homaged" from SE7EN didn't kill poor Max. The previews show he's still alive.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:30am
I cried for an hour after I saw Seven. I've never seen it since and I've done my best to block it out.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:36am
I watched it twice last weekend, so it was nice to see so many scenes in AHS that were so blatantly homaged.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 1:19am
AVCLUB review is up. I'm glad they called out the SE7EN "homages", as well.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 9:49am
The review gave it a B-, with which I agree. And the writer touches on everything, like how we all just expect it's going to collapse. And I laughed at this line: "It’s like no other show on television, and it teaches us how to watch it—a form of appreciation that eschews such conventions as 'liking' or 'understanding.'"
Posted: 10/8/15 at 10:09am
Watching it, I thought, this is overstuffed with characters. I can't wait till ten more get added to the mix.
The reviews and comments seem to be split between Gaga's flat affect being a character choice and being mediocre acting. My hunch is the latter.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 10:14am
But it's nowhere near Body of Evidence flat.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 10:22am
I'd give anything for Madonna to reprise that role and have Nikki Finn check into the Hotel.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 10:34am
Do a remix! I bet you can splice Nikki in via iMovies!
Posted: 10/8/15 at 10:38am
Has anyone mentioned the Village of the Damned "homage?" Because that was definitely there.
Also I know this is crazy to ask a real question about this show but what was up with all the classic literature? Wes Bentley was reading Little Women to his daughter. His kids are named Holden and Scarlet. Liz Taylor was reading Ulysses.
Updated On: 10/8/15 at 10:38 AM
Posted: 10/8/15 at 10:54am
I wasn't surprised that it was awful. I was surprised at how awful Lady Gaga was though.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 10:59am
She went to Tisch for like a week! She's a musical theatre kid at heart! She'll be great!
Posted: 10/8/15 at 11:06am
The Vulture review is much more critical than AVClub but ends on a great note:
You’ve seen it all before, and you’ve never seen anything like it. The show could crater as early as next week. I’ll be watching.
Posted: 10/8/15 at 11:15am
I saw a recap last night (I thought it was EW, but if its, it was rewritten) that said something to the effect of "Gaga is fine, at least until she opens her mouth."
Posted: 10/8/15 at 11:23am
From the hilarious Vulture piece:
Gaga is terrible here in the way that Madonna was terrible in a lot of her ’90s films, at once too poised and too blank. But she’s Gaga, a performer who’s as much an athlete and sculptural object as a singer-songwriter, so in this context, she works.
Somewhere, the magnanimous Grace Jones is yelling, "Athlete and sculptural object? DORIS STOLE THAT FROM ME!!!"
Updated On: 10/8/15 at 11:23 AM
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:05pm
Yeah that avclub review is pretty spot on.
A lot of blog attention to the rape (which is what Murphy/Falchuk wanted,) but I liked screencrush's piece pointing out that Murphy can go on about how it's a deep metaphor all he wants and that's still not what someone necessarily sees on screen (he called the rape last year a metaphor too--that time though somehow it was a metaphor about allowing yourself to accept the freak within you--Rape can mean SO MANY THINGS!!)) http://screencrush.com/american-horror-story-hotel-recap-disturbing-scene/
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:24pm
I couldn't help but laugh at the "Expect the Unexpected" at the beginning. I realize no one has a claim on that phrase, but Julie Chen says it on every episode of Big Brother, and it seemed like a weird thing to suddenly say at the beginning of the show, especially when nothing was really unexpected. Maybe this season is a metaphor for reality tv!
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:26pm
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:29pm
I had no context for the rape scene and got the metaphor instantly. It doesn't take a genius.
I thought the episode was great, lot's of characters to introduce, and we have barely met them all yet. Gripping scenes, sexual drama, gore, terror, and creepiness abounds. I really thought it was one of the top episodes of the entire series. I think Gaga really killed it, you can't help but be intrigued by the Mysteriousness and sexual aura of the Countess. Matt Bomer was fantastic, as was Kathy Bates and Sarah Paulson. Such great Character work happening in this show from everyone!
It is going to be a good season!
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:29pm
Ha! And oh, no--now all I can picture is Ryan Murphy doing a souped up rendition (starring himself,) of Finishing the Hat. Poor, tortured artist that he is.
Expect the Unexpected had me laugh too because, as every critic now points out, the thing to expect with AHS is that they will throw into it everything they can think of which always harks back as a reference to something else. (This may be unfair, but I can't help thinking Murphy quickly scripted in the orgy after he saw how much social media attention the orgy in Sense8 got over the Summer.)
Posted: 10/8/15 at 12:32pm
"Maybe this season is a metaphor for reality tv!"
i hope we hear Gaga tell someone that she's "not here to make friends" and that she's "in it to win it".
Updated On: 10/8/15 at 12:32 PM
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