American Horror Story: Hotel

Tags

2010's, American Horror Story, American Horror Story: Hotel, Angela Bassett, Cheyenne Jackson, Chloë Sevigny, Denis O'Hare, Evan Peters, Finn Wittrock, John Carroll Lynch, Kathy Bates, Lady Gaga, Lily Rabe, Mare Winningham, Matt Bomer, Sarah Paulson, Wes Bentley

With Freakshow emerging as my least favourite season of American Horror Story, my expectations were high for Season 5. Thankfully, though not without some flaws, Hotel is a resounding success of horror, style and game acting. Be warned, spoilers may follow in this return to form for the show.

John Lowe( Wes Bentley) is a Los Angeles detective on the edge; he’s estranged from his doctor wife Alex(Chloë Sevigny) and on the hunt for a brutal serial killer who murders victims in accordance to The Ten Commandments. Plus he is haunted by the disappearance of his young son Holden years prior. He feels responsible for the disappearance and this is what he has to live with every day. One day he is given a tip off that his answers can be found in the Hotel Cortez. A glamorous yet run down establishment with a history of horror, it soon pulls John into its depravity and history of death. The owner of hotel is the fabulously dressed and very mysterious Countess( Lady Gaga). She is a vampire like creature infected with a virus that leaves the sufferer craving blood. Her companion of late is the handsome Donovan(Matt Bomer), who she goes hunting with. She was the one who took Holden as well as other children who she turns into creatures like her in order to create something of a makeshift family. She is a fearsome creature, but is secretly hiding her true self and tragic past. The Countess finds her head turned by volatile male model Tristan( Finn Wittrock) , which enrages Donovan. Also in her sights are the soon to be owner Will Drake( Cheyenne Jackson), a fashion designer who doesn’t realise he’s part of a scheme to get his money. There’s the ghost of James Patrick March( Evan Peters), the founder of the hotel in the 20’s, who turned the place into a murder palace and was helped by the ever loyal, cleaning fanatic Miss Evers( Mare Winningham) . On front desk there is Donovan’s surly mother Iris(Kathy Bates) who longs for a relationship with her son and Liz Taylor( Denis O’Hare), a transgender bartender who seems to see everything and everyone. Also traipsing about the Hotel is the ghost of one Sally McKenna(Sarah Paulson), a trashy junkie in a constant state of sadness and mania, who was pushed out of a high window by Iris for getting Donovan hooked on drugs in 1994. Arriving later on the scene is Ramona Royale( Angela Bassett) a former lover of The Countess with a big axe to grind. Everything comes to a head once John takes up residence and gets a lot more than he ever bargained for.

I think straight from the opening, Hotel stands higher than its season just passed. For starters, I found the characters had more flavour and personality than in the last season. Plus, you could connect with many of them too, primarily Liz Taylor and Iris who both convince as outsiders wanting something more in life. And though the story had many different angles and sub plots, it largely worked and it was fun seeing how various threads connected. Sure, some parts don’t amount to much, but I found it a lot more compelling than which seemed to run out of steam rather quickly. The themes of loss and rebirth form the main crux of Hotel and it was excellent how we watched the characters change and influence one another. Hotel ranks at least in my book as the bloodiest season thus far. As it has done in the past, the blood is shocking and grisly, but definitely used to fashion a twisted delight that scares and compels at the same time. Scenes that stand out for their brutality are The Countess and Donovan slaughtering a couple during sex, a junkie being mercilessly abused by a faceless demon, a corpse rising from a rotting mattress and most shocking, a band of infected children making a meal out of one of their teachers.American Horror Story references some of the best content in the horror genre with style and panache. The crimes of the killer are a stylish homage to Seven, while the hotel of the title takes its cues from The Shining. And I’m a big fan of the flashbacks to March’s mayhem and murderous ways as the show employs a grainy black and white to emulate the time and bring out events in horrifying detail.

As it has done in the past, American Horror Story always succeeds when taking influence from real life events. Here, the hotel is similar to that of the one the depraved murderer H.H. Holmes and the poor fate of the child of chambermaid Miss Evers blends with that of the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders. And the best of all the real world allusions is an episode entitled ‘Devil’s Night’. In it, March hosts a feast for the ghosts of dead serial killers, such as Jeffrey Dahmer, Richard Ramirez, Aileen Wuornos and John Wayne Gacy. An already starting to lose it John finds himself thrown into this horror show and under the influence of absinthe, watches as these killers enjoy their depravity and find merriment in their sickening handiwork. Watch out for memorable work from John Carroll Lynch and Lily Rabe. For some reason, its something that works in the scheme of the show. Visuals are a strong component in the show and Hotel is no exception right from the opening frames. It’s an extravaganza for the eyes and senses that’s for sure and certain. Particularly good is the fish eye lens employed at times that suits the unstable nature of the establishment and turns things into something unusual. I’m not the biggest fan of the overlapping of seasons as American Horror Story was originally billed as an anthology. Though saying that while some of the bringing back of other characters fails, I found the callbacks to Murder House were particularly effective and the return of the medium( also played by Sarah Paulson) in the finale was a very well handled part and one I really liked seeing. And I can’t not praise the production department who pull out all the stops when it comes to design. The Cortez becomes a dark hotbed of violence and style, clashing with each other with reckless abandon. A well chosen soundtrack and electric, humming score add further to the delirious ride through death, horror and story.

The cast surrender to the madness and horror with fantastic results.Leading the cast is the new addition of pop superstar Lady Gaga, who shows that acting is yet another skill in her arsenal. She plays the Countess as a seemingly aloof being who dresses and lives to kill, but is looking for something more. Her performance is very multifaceted and extremely impressive at showcasing various sides to the character, in particular deep tragedy coupled with ruthless sex appeal. Then we have Wes Bentley, who is suitably intense as the emotionally scarred detective finding himself falling into madness. He just burns across the screen with a vulnerability, quivering seriousness and frightening devotion. Matt Bomer, with his strong appeal and good looks, is ideal as the latest lover in the life of the Countess. He enjoys the position but it has grown a tad stale for him and his resentment starts to form. Plus, when he’s with Lady Gaga, they make a sizzling duo. As the new paramour of The Countess, Finn Wittrock is all scowls and attitude, with a few other layers underneath. Chloë Sevigny, who I’ve always admired as an actress, turns in emotional weight and desperation as a grieving mother who goes to extremes for her son. I liked her arc in this series as she begins as a broken woman and slowly gets in touch with another unexpected part of herself.

The best performances comes courtesy of Denis O’Hare, Kathy Bates , Evan Peters and Sarah Paulson. It’s good to see a transgender character portrayed on television with respect and honesty and Denis O’Hare acts his socks off. From the great one liners through the backstory of the transformation into the person she is today, it’s all played beautifully and sympathetically by the always watchable Denis O’Hare. Thankfully in recent times, many forms of media have followed suit by showcasing characters that are transgender and actually treating them with understanding and decency. Long may that continue. Ably complimenting him is the excellent Kathy Bates, who puts in another fantastic performance . Going from dark humour to crushing sadness and then a rebirth, Bates captures the attention with her convincing acting and A Game. The always impressive Evan Peters, playing probably his most extreme character thus far, is electrifying. Mixing a Clark Gable accent with a sadistic hunger for murder, he crafts March as a supreme being of evil that is strangely charming. Peters turns in one of his finest performances in the run of the show. Rounding out the standout quartet is the wonderful Sarah Paulson. Always seen here with a mournful look( complete with smudged eye liner and the appearance of never ending tears) that also shares itself with a sly underbelly, her portrayal of the messed up Sally is riveting. You really don’t know what you’re going to get with her character and Paulson rocks it. I adore Angela Bassett and how she embraces the outrageousness of the material. She just embodies the sassy, fierce and out there nature of American Horror Story. And even if her character’s arc doesn’t feel well utilised enough, Bassett makes it sensationally watchable all the same. Providing the unusual but also tragic is Mare Winningham as the chamber maid with a love of cleaning. At first glance she’s strange and you don’t know what to make, but Winningham discovers pathos and depth in this woman who could have just been one dimensional. The main cast member who isn’t really given a chance to make an impression is Cheyenne Jackson. I’ve seen him in other things and think he’s a good actor, but he just doesn’t really get a look in here.

Hotel finds American Horror Story back in fine fettle, owing to well written characters, a theatrical staging and plenty of chills.

Waiting to Exhale

Tags

1990's, Angela Bassett, Comedy, Dennis Haysbert, Drama, Forest Whitaker, Gregory Hines, Lela Rochon, Loretta Devine, Michael Beach, Waiting to Exhale, Wesley Snipes, Whitney Houston

Film Title

Waiting to Exhale

Director

Forest Whitaker

Starring

• Whitney Houston as Savannah Jackson
• Angela Bassett as Bernadine Harris
• Lela Rochon as Robin Stokes
• Loretta Devine as Gloria Matthews
• Gregory Hines as Marvin
• Dennis Haysbert as Kenneth
• Michael Beach as John Harris
• Wesley Snipes as James

A glossy comedy drama concerning the love lives and friendships of four African-American women, Waiting to Exhale definitely has a lot of things going for it on the entertainment factor. But while it has some things to recommend, primarily a hot soundtrack and largely impressive casting, Waiting to Exhale just felt overall too slight of a film to make an impact on me.

A quartet of African-American women( Savannah, Bernadine, Robin and Gloria) all experience differences in romantic relationships and love . All living in Phoenix, their relationships with men are never easy and they often meet to discuss their various problems with the opposite sex over vino and food. Savannah is a television producer who has been having a relationship with Kenneth, a married man who keeps promising to leave his wife. Yet she is growing restless with his lying and contemplates taking charge once and for all. Bernadine thought she had a great marriage and lifestyle. That is until slimy John leaves her after eleven years for his secretary and she is crestfallen. She must deal with how best to move forward and reclaim her life as a single woman. The trouble is she never expected any of this to happen, so must go back to square one again and see what she can do. Robin is a flighty girl still hung up on a no good guy, but having casual flings with other guys while she waits for him to finally be in a proper relationship with her. And Gloria, who discovers that her ex-husband is gay, desperately craves company as her son is soon leaving home. Luckily, a new neighbour, handyman Marvin , moves in and she takes a shine to him. Throughout it all, the four women have their friendship to fall back on and rely on in confusing times concerning the heart.

Forest Whitaker adds touches of class as director and knows how to create nice imagery. I do believe he’s trying his best to bring these stories to life and he makes them at least watchable. The script and other areas are where Waiting to Exhale loses me. It just comes off as rather a few, slight vignettes than as a cohesive story, which is something of a detriment to Waiting to Exhale. I mean, I don’t mind me some episodic stories but usually its when they flow that I go for them, which sadly wasn’t the main case here. I did like the interactions between the women(which have humour to a lot of them and a nice dynamic), but I wish there were more of them to flesh things out a bit more. It was mainly Bernadine’s story that moved me the most; her story felt the most compelling as she grew stronger and shared a tentative attraction with a man going through crisis( a brief but memorable turn from Wesley Snipes). The other stories didn’t quite have the pulling power of Bernadine’s, even though Gloria’s pining for her neighbour was nicely observed. I can see that Waiting to Exhale provides escapism for many, I just can’t quite place my finger on why it felt somewhat flat for me. It started pretty well, but for me, it grew rather tedious and drawn out if we’re talking about the overall picture. I think it is a movie that does have some satisfaction and fun, but one that doesn’t really burn into the memory that well because of a lack of depth. The soundtrack however, with soul grooves, courtesy of Babyface, is really smooth and easy to listen to. It was a redeeming feature in a flawed movie.

A saving grace of this film is the main cast, especially Angela Bassett and Loretta Devine. Whitney Houston, looking gorgeous and stylish, gives Savannah a wry humour and quiet depth that is very beneficial and lovely. Angela Bassett is the main standout as the wounded but clearly not beaten Bernadine. As broken down as Bernadine is, the innate toughness Bassett brings to the screen always came off loud and clear that would be a fighter. I mean watching her torch her lying spouse’s fancy clothes and car was pretty satisfying viewing. Her blend of anger and vulnerability sold a lot of the emotion the film was going for and did it successfully. On the other end of the spectrum is Lela Rochon, who does a good enough job, but feels more than a bit stretched as the mixed up Robin. Don’t get me wrong, she’s quite appealing in parts, yet lacks the depth that the role later calls for and comes off as too weak in terms of acting chops. Loretta Devine really has a ball as the caring but hilarious Gloria, who represents a certain voice of calm amid all the entanglements. I loved her vivacious energy and timing, it was pretty spot on. Gregory Hines is a nice presence as the only really good guy(along with Wesley Snipes) in the picture. The rest, mainly Dennis Haysbert and Michael Beach, excel at playing the weasels who do nothing but promise sweet nothing to the ladies.

Undoubtedly entertaining as Waiting to Exhale is, I just found my interest levels lagging a lot. I will say that it all was shot nicely, had a soulful soundtrack and nice work from the cast(mainly Angela Bassett and Loretta Devine), but there was something missing that stopped it from being special.

What’s Love Got To Do With It

Tags

1990's, Angela Bassett, Biopic, Brian Gibson, Laurence Fishburne, Tina Turner, What's Love Got To Do With It

Film Title

What’s Love Got To Do With It

Director

Brian Gibson

Starring

• Angela Bassett as Tina Turner
• Laurence Fishburne as Ike Turner

A biopic of Tina Turner, her rise to stardom, abusive marriage to husband Ike and eventual freedom is dramatised with verve here in What’s Love Got To Do With It. Now is quite generic and follows the rules of a biopic to the letter, but that shouldn’t distant from the incredible acting, killer soundtrack and revealing glimpse into a woman’s gradual emergence as a liberated and unafraid star.

We begin in Nutbush, Tennessee where Anna Mae Bullock( Turner’s birth name) is a young girl with a big voice. She is abandoned by her parents at an early age and is raised by her grandmother. Flash forward a few years, and she’s a shy and coltish young lady coming to St. Louis to see her long estranged mother. It is here with her sister that Anna Mae first meets charismatic bandleader Ike Turner in a bar. One night when he’s performing, the microphone is passed around the female patrons. It ends up with her and when she belts out a song, everyone is totally surprised. Ike sees something in Anna Mae and begins mentoring her, later giving her the name Tina Turner and structuring his band around her. Soon success is pouring in for Ike and Tina( who marry quickly) in ways she never thought possible. Yet events quickly sour and get darker as Ike becomes more insecure and addled with drugs. This leads to him putting pressure on Tina to perform no matter whether she’s too exhausted to do it. And when she begins to gain most of the attention, Ike’s abusive streak reaches physical heights and brutal beatings, which terrify and cage Tina. Scared to leave despite his torment of her and humiliation at his hands, Tina sticks with Ike, but slowly crumbles under his abuse. That is until Tina finally gains the stiffening of her backbone needed to leave Ike and take control of her life.

What’s Love Got To Do With It is pretty conventional in its main execution like a lot of biopics, but director Brian Gibson still makes it a film to remember with how dark he depicts events behind the curtain. The biggest flaw for me is how quickly everything moves, with certain events and is hit and miss with its timing. Granted, the news footage with a hand-held sort of grain that presents the passing of events in a largely effective manner, even if the screenplay some homes leap frogs some things and leaves you to fill in the gaps. Credit should be given to his grimly realistic the brutality and emotional torture of Tina under Ike is depicted. This unvarnished and at times shocking depiction of events lends a wallop that some biopics miss by trying to be overly glossy. At the centre of the movie is the self-discovery and worth of Tina, who slowly finds a fortitude within herself that enables her to become a survivor. And the other saving grace in the film is the bravura music numbers. From a relentless and exhausting cross cutting performance of ‘Proud Mary’ to the solo triumph of Tina with the title song, the music and its sound are fully alive and vividly staged.

If there is anything that really raises the roof of What’s Love Got To Do With It, it is the two exceptional performances of Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne. Angela Bassett strikingly and uncannily captures the feisty, sultry and energetic persona of Turner on stage, while revealing the well of sadness and torment behind closed doors at the hands of possessive Ike. Seriously, Bassett gets so much into the part, that you genuinely feel like you’re watching the real woman in action. That’s one of the highest compliments you can give a star, but it’s warranted with how Bassett turns in a performance of vulnerability, appeal and a burgeoning steel to stand up for herself. Equally as compelling is Laurence Fishburne and his interpretation of Ike. A seductive and very suave guy in the beginning who recognizes the talent in Tina, his mercurial and resentful personality soon comes out with frightening and brute force. Fishburne explosively charts this path and  frighteningly throws himself into the part with superb results. It’s safe to say that the film wouldn’t have been the same or as watchable where it not for Bassett and Fishburne.

Conventional and oversimplified as some of it may be, What’s Love Got To Do With It gets its power from two sensational lead performances of Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne. Add to that one hell of a soundtrack, as well as its depiction of the strength that Tina had to gain in order to forge her own success away from the darkness and the film is eminently watchable.

 

American Horror Story: Freak Show

Tags

2010's, American Horror Story, American Horror Story: Freak Show, Angela Bassett, Denis O'Hare, Emma Roberts, Evan Peters, Finn Wittrock, Frances Conroy, Jessica Lange, John Carroll Lynch, Kathy Bates, Michael Chiklis, Sarah Paulson, Wes Bentley

This fourth season of the hit horror anthology entitled Freak Show boasts even more weird content than before. Even though there were flaws in the previous installment Coven, I think Freak Show emerges as the weakest season so far, putting it well below the supreme greatness of Murder House and Asylum. Though that may be the case, the cast, style and blend of strange and extremely unusual horror makes it at least have some currency and effectiveness, albeit in something of a tired capacity. Be warned, there will be spoilers in my review.

The setting is Jupiter, Florida 1952. Elsa Mars(Jessica Lange) is a glamorous German expat who is running a struggling freak show and has delusional ideas set on stardom. The floundering freak show’s fortunes have dwindled due to the increase in popularity of television and immense stigma aimed towards the performers in the show. She comes across a rare find: conjoined twins named Bette and Dot(Sarah Paulson), who were found looked away in their sheltered house with their mother brutally murdered. Although they share a body, they are two distinct personalities; Bette is dreamy and romantic, whereas Dot is stern and unsmiling. Yet they are very conflicting and occasionally their personalities overlap, clearly shown when it is later revealed that the sweet Bette was the one who murdered their horrible mother for locking them away. Elsa sees the girls as saviors for her show and takes them under her wing and in time they prove a prize-winning draw. But this comes at a price as Elsa grows increasingly jealous of the attention lavished upon them. The other members of the sinking freak show are Jimmy Darling(Evan Peters), who has hands that are webbed giving him the nickname ‘Lobster Boy’, his loyal mother and bearded lady Ethel(Kathy Bates) and later Jimmy’s strongman father Dell(Michael Chiklis) and his hermaphrodite wife with three breasts Desiree(Angela Bassett). Ethel keeps the fact that she is dying and that Dell is Jimmy’s father to herself because of history. Yet as the show begins to take off, horror and deception soon invades in various forms. A menacing clown known as Twisty(John Carroll Lynch) , clad in a horrific mask, begins to terrorise and kill people in the surrounding areas.  He later finds a helper in the form of spoiled man-child Dandy Mott(Finn Wittrock), who is bored with his rich life and obsessed with the freak show, in particular Bette and Dot. But after being turned away by the show and when Twisty is taken away by a Halloween spirit adding to his collection,  Dandy soon evolves into something more sadistic than ever, much to the worry of his subservient mother Gloria(Frances Conroy). After a police officer insults Jimmy and the other members of the troupe, out of anger Jimmy kills him and has to cover up the murder. Two money hungry con artists, Stanley(Denis O’Hare) and fake fortune-teller Maggie Esmeralda(Emma Roberts) infiltrate the camp, but while Stanley is willing to murder one of the freaks to get his dirty hands on a profit, the observant Maggie gets cold feet despite her skewed moral compass as her conscience catches up with her. So who will survive as carnage creeps in and evil rears its head once again, predominately in the form of the psychotic Dandy?

As I have already mentioned, Freak Show is for my money the weakest season so far. So I think it’s best to get my thoughts on the stuff that didn’t work out the way first because there is still some good parts to it and it isn’t a complete failure. I sometimes found some of the characters this time where not written with the usual verve that the show is known. And the fact that important characters seem to appear and then disappear, either by being killed off or god knows what else is a bit jarring. I just felt that Freak Show didn’t have the grip that past entries have so successfully evoked. The pacing could have been kicked up a notch or two, as certain episodes did drag before finding a bit of a groove. Then again, I know every season of a show can’t be amazing, but I expected a bit more from American Horror Story.

Moving on to the positives of this season, of which there are a number of. The visual palette popped with bright colours of the carnival, that acted as irony to the disturbing events brewing beneath the surface.  The addressing of themes of prejudice provides a modern resonance, because while steps have been taken in the world to eradicate discrimination, it is still there. Freak Show portrays the circus troupe as human beings who have done nothing wrong but look different to others. Through this, we feel a sense of kinship towards them in their struggle for acceptance in a cruel world. I loved the two-part episode set on Halloween that features Edward Mordrake(played splendidly by Wes Bentley), a man with another head that speaks to him who collects a freak every Halloween. There is such an eerie feeling when he’s on screen and though his brief appearance we get glimpses into both Elsa’s and Twisty’s past and unearth tragedy in both. Freak Show also ups the ante on bloodshed this time, with many scenes of murder emerging as extremely disquieting and very disturbing to watch. And not forgetting an excellent score that combines with the unusual nature of the show and sends a doom-laden pulse through each frame. While I’m discussing music, I have to speak of the musical numbers that are sprinkled throughout. Modern songs placed in an older setting can often be jarring, but here it is quite enjoyable. The title sequence follows with a stop motion evocation of the carnival, complete with nightmarish clowns, carousels and strange figures. Once more, the title sequence is a tone setter with the customary unusual tics that have become the show’s trademark.

And despite the negatives that somewhat spoil the potential that this season had, the talented cast makes up for some of these errors with good work, often rising above the limited material they’re given to work with. The amazing Jessica Lange signs off from the show in style portraying the manipulative Elsa, who’ll do just about anything to keep her star in the ascendance. Lange just brings a whole wealth of emotions and drama to the character that I think her presence will be missed in future seasons of American Horror Story. Sarah Paulson turns in captivating work as the Siamese twins Bette and Dot. The way she displays the opposite personalities of both and then sometimes wraps them together is quite marvellous to view. Evan Peters exudes a sense of pathos and dignity as Jimmy, whose beliefs that the troupe should be treated equally is to be admired but whose actions regarding this sometimes end badly as he challenges the norm. Kathy Bates exhibits her usual high calibre mark to the role as the strangely accented Ethel, dealing with the fact she is dying and staying loyal to those around her. Angela Bassett has a sassy ability that she incorporates into Desiree, while Michael Chiklis as strongman Dell, who is fearing that a secret will get out, imbued the part with strength and emotion. Both of the roles played by Bassett and Chiklis I felt were underwritten, but they both sidestepped this flaw and made the parts better.

Joining the cast and making a huge impact is Finn Wittrock in the evil role of Dandy. Essaying the part with bratty antics, a stunted, petulant manner, sinister smiles and arrogance, Wittrock makes Dandy a really frightening monster as his boredom with his rich life begins to manifest itself as murderous and heinous crimes. This season may be weaker, but one can’t fault the work of Wittrock here. John Carroll Lynch makes a mark despite his brief appearance as Twisty the clown. By turns immensely creepy and then when his back story is revealed quite sad, his presence can’t be forgotten. Frances Conroy has all the right nervous ticks and worry as Dandy’s mother Gloria. A delightfully slimy performance from Denis O’Hare as a remorseless con man is a highlight of the weirdness this show can conjure up, and Emma Roberts is convincing as his accomplice who has a change of heart after getting to know the troupe and feeling sympathy for them.

So while pushing the envelope once more with disturbing content and featuring a great cast once more, Freak Show lacks the killer punch of past seasons. Hopefully the next season can bring back some magic.

American Horror Story: Coven

Tags

2010's, American Horror Story, American Horror Story: Coven, Angela Bassett, Denis O'Hare, Emma Roberts, Evan Peters, Frances Conroy, Gabourey Sidibe, Jamie Brewer, Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates, Lily Rabe, Sarah Paulson, Taissa Farmiga

I decided to go back to American Horror Story again to catch up as I felt I’d fallen behind. This will be my review of Season 3, subtitled Coven. While still as chilling and weirdly perverse as Murder House and Asylum, I just feel like there’s something missing from it to make it a better entry. Not that the season is bad, in fact its far from it with excellent acting, chills and atmosphere, it just slightly pales in comparison with its predecessors. Be warned, spoilers will follow in this review.

Coven is set in modern-day New Orleans. Zoe Benson( Taissa Farmiga) is a young girl whose life appears pretty normal, until a strange and tragic incident reveals that she is in fact a witch. Her power is that when anyone comes into sexually contact with anyone they will die horribly. Feeling alone and afraid, she is bundled off to Miss Robichaux’s Academy that doubles as a haven for witches to harness their powers and survive intolerance thrown at them. The school is watched over by the demure Cordelia Foxx( Sarah Paulson), whose mother Fiona Goode( Jessica Lange) is the reigning Supreme ( in other words the most powerful witch). Fiona has been out-of-town on a personal vanity trip to find a way to restore her waning youth. She returns and takes charge of the school, much to the chagrin of her estranged daughter. Fiona is still obsessed with retaining youth and her position as Supreme and no one is going to stand in her way, even if it includes murdering the next in line. Fiona’s integrity and less than perfect rise to being the Supreme is constantly questioned by the council, specifically Myrtle Snow( Frances Conroy), her most sworn enemy. Little by little, we see how devious she can be and how only Spalding( Denis O’Hare), the mute butler of the Academy knows of her past misdeeds. Meanwhile Zoe befriends fellow witches Madison Montgomery( Emma Roberts), the catty movie star who is telekinetic, Queenie( Gabourey Sidibe), an African-American girl who can inflict pain on other much like a voodoo doll and the wise clairvoyant and telepathic Nan( Jamie Brewer). As the series progresses the witches come under attack from outside forces. A long truce between witches and voodoo practitioners comes to a bitter end when Fiona over steps the mark when searching for eternal beauty and angers priestess Marie Laveau( Angela Bassett) with harrowing results. We also have Delphine LaLaurie( Kathy Bates), a wealthy women who murdered slaves in the 19th Century and was cursed with immortal life by Laveau resurfacing again after Fiona finds her unmarked grave. She’s not the only person returning as we have Misty Day( Lily Rabe) a nature loving witch with the power of resurrection who dwells in the swamps after being burned at the stake for her gift by the zealously religious community . Zoe meets nice guy Kyle Spencer( Evan Peters) at a party and takes a liking to him. But when his frat brothers rape Madison, the movie star gains revenge by flipping over their bus and killing them. Zoe is devastated that Kyle is dead because he was innocent and Madison, who is clearly more confident with magic makes a bargain with her. Through dark powers and an assembling of assorted body parts in the morgue, they resurrect Kyle again but their experiment turns him into a Frankenstein like being of immensely violent and unpredictable rage. Intolerance from the outside world and unrest among the girls also threatens to sneak in as they must not only band together, but ultimately eliminate the others to rise to being the new Supreme.

I think I’ll start by talking about the main things that didn’t work for me first. While I know that subtlety is not what American Horror Story is all about, I just felt that Coven overdid it with the sheer outrageousness this time around. And while the campy humour and crackling dialogue is often a Godsend on this show, it really went overboard. Hopefully when I get to the next season, this can be a bit more controlled and not as disjointed as it is here in Coven. Also, I felt certain plot elements( such as almost a million resurrections) were used repetitively and thus became a little stale. I mean in the beginning the resurrection thing is interesting for certain characters like Misty and Myrtle, but then when it shifts to other it becomes a little dull. Many of the episodes feel disjointed and this does have a negative impact on this season.

And now onto the good stuff of this flawed but still watchable season, of which there is a lot. I really liked the whole arc of witchcraft and voodoo clashing and the history of it. It also introduces in various ways the subject of prejudice and intolerance. It can be seen with the young girls of the academy as they are shielded away to avoid abuse and the racism of the past that still lingers on. Coven delivers the horror in spades, with little nods here and there to films that populate the genre and a few new spins. Like most of the seasons, I don’t think anyone will find it easy to sleep after watching the horrifying and brutal episodes that abound. I mean just listing some of the things that happen doesn’t do it justice: we’ve got killer zombies, rituals, cascades of dripping blood, necromancy, beheading. You named it, Coven’s got it. And I can’t do a review without mentioning yet another sinister title sequence. This time we have stark black and white images of fire, tarot cards, witchcraft rituals, a Minotaur and plenty more disturbing imagery that is designed to disturb.

The music throughout is spine-chilling with an intense electronic pulse that seems to predict the gloom that will inevitably come once the war breaks out. Unusual camera angles and strange jump cuts only add to the effect of the season and capture the alienation that is felt primarily by Zoe because of her gift. The location of New Orleans offers a Southern Gothic atmosphere that is palpable and memorable. From the swamps to the cemeteries, it has such a mystical and mysterious aura surrounding it.

Once again, we have many amazingly written and played female roles on display here, which is one of the show’s biggest strengths. Jessica Lange is at her glorious best in the role of Fiona, a powerful witch and a ruthless bitch. Lange successfully embodies the fabulous personality of her, while showing us that as despicable as Fiona is, there is a heart in there somewhere beneath the hard exterior. The talented Lange is at her best when delivering catty lines, going to extreme methods to stop her from being usurped and exuding menace as the vanity obsessed Fiona, which gives the show that something else. Kathy Bates is an excellent addition to the show, bringing her always high calibre skills to the role. She portrays Delphine as initially remorseless for her cruel and twisted actions in the past. Yet Bates goes beneath this and shows that is remorse in there and injects the character with eccentricity and mordant humour as she has the tables turned on her by having immortality and struggling to accept the modern world. The fact that she strikes up an unusual friendship with Queenie( an excellent Gabourey Sidibe) shows a different side to Delphine. Angela Bassett rounds out this trio of excellent women with her fierce performance of the voodoo queen Marie Laveau. Bassett exudes rage, a sense of mystery and unquestionable power as she declares war on the coven. It’s safe to say that the combined talents of these three amazing actresses, armed with one-liners and put downs, ensures that Coven is watchable, despite a few flaws.

The rest of the cast is none too shabby either. Taissa Farmiga is superb at getting under the skin of isolated Zoe who discovers the extent of witchcraft along the way. Sarah Paulson ably charts the emergence of Cordelia from her insular and demure facade to powerful witch who is not to be trifled with. A lot of this change comes when she is blinded by acid, by this she gains the power to see the true nature of people and sends her on the way to battle. Emma Roberts obviously is relishing the role of Madison, who is trashy, flashy and bitchy. Roberts brings this seemingly stock character who is criminally underwritten to life with verve and tongue in cheek delivery. Jamie Brewer and Gabourey Sidibe both turn in great work as two of the witches of the coven that befriend Zoe, while the always reliable Denis O’Hare gives the role of the silent butler Spalding menace and intrigue. Lily Rabe is ethereal and dreamlike as the nature-loving, Stevie Nicks fangirl and very strong Misty. Rabe just radiates this glow that is hard to describe but you just can’t take your eyes off when she appears on screen. Frances Conroy stole whatever scenes she was in as the determined, wildly dressed and ostentatious Myrtle Snow. While Evan Peters did a credible job as the resurrected Kyle, I personally felt he wasn’t given enough to do in comparison with the characters he has played in the past.

Flawed it may be and probably the series of the show that so far I didn’t fully enjoy, Coven is far from unwatchable thanks to a game cast and overall craziness.