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Reviews
American Horror Story (2011)
A Scary Movie in a Weekly Show
American Horror Story is an attempt to take the horror movie from the big screen to a weekly to drama. It has the elements of a story akin to The Amityville Horror or A Haunting in Connecticut where a family moves into a new home filled with a sinister past that has a habit of rearing its ugly head. The families ignore the history and give the homes a try anyway only to find themselves wrapped in a terrifying mystery.
American Horror Story focuses on the Harmon family who is moving from Boston to Los Angeles to escape their past. Vivien Harmon (Connie Britton) is still reeling from the miscarriage of her baby boy and the subsequent affair she caught her husband having to "cope" with the loss. Ben Harmon (Dylan McDermott) is a psychiatrist who is trying to escape his mistake of sleeping with one of his college students and the rift it has caused in his marriage. Violet (Taissa Farmiga) their daughter is disgusted with her parents and the move but loves the house and its sinister past.
The plot only thickens as the cast grows. Tate Langdon (Evan Peters) is one of Ben's new patients who shows not only an interest in Violet but an unusual amount of knowledge about the house. Constance (Jessica Lange) is the Harmons' next door neighbor and seems to have no problem not only speaking her mind but being pushy and threatening. Last but not least Larry Harvey (Denis O'Hare), a former owner of the Harmons' house, starts to follow Ben and warn him about the house. Larry had murdered his entire family in that house and he warns Ben that if he's not careful that house will change him and may make him do something he wouldn't otherwise do.
This show is a really creative idea. To be honest it's strange to me that no one has ever tried to do something like this before. It has all of the normal concepts and ideas that keep you coming back to a normal drama series, but it has the added element of a horror movie. So you not only get the mystery but the ghosts and the murders. It's nice because you don't only get one type of horror movie. You get ghosts, you get slasher, you get possession type horror like Larry who ended up killing his family. The show appeals to all tastes of horror.
One of the things that could be better is that there are just so many characters that seem to know something about the house and they also seem to know each other. This makes things a little confusing. The writers are probably trying to keep the audience interested but this particular collection of twists is a little confusing. Maybe as the series unfolds it will become clearer.
Someone that really loves horror movies will love this show. It keeps your attention with all of the twists and turns. This show takes an amazing genre of films and allows an audience to have a new weekly addiction. It's a great mystery/horror fix.
Death Valley (2011)
Cops and Zombies
A mix of Reno 911 and Zombieland, MTV's new mocumentary Death Valley follows the Undead Task Force. The UTF was created just one year before to combat the mysterious appearance of zombies, vampires, and werewolves in California's San Fernando Valley.
You might recognize Captain Dashell (Bryan Callen) as Eddie the wedding chapel owner from The Hangover. He's lost the accent and the overload of affection but not the humor. Stubeck (Charlie Sanders) and Pierce (Bryce Johnson) are the dynamic moron duo. They are more worried about looking cool and one-liners than doing a good job but they keep you laughing. Rinaldi (Tania Raymonde) and John-John (Texas Battle) are the resident bad asses who kick butt and take names. They aren't afraid to do what they have to including take out one of their own, a zombie bitten camera man. And no good spoof would be complete without the newbie, Kirsten (Caity Lotz). She may be new and the Captain may not believe in her but it's clear that she knows her stuff. But doubtful she'll ever get the credit.
The show has an interesting take on the zombie/vampire phenomena. Zombies are a part of everyday life instead of an apocalypse occurrence. The cops see zombies as just another criminal and take care of the problem like they would any other. Well, they beat them with bats and blow their brains out, so not exactly like any other. Vampires are prostitutes who get paid in blood. The show pokes fun at the zombie/vampire genre and does a good job of it while not being mean. Best of all the camera people get in on the action which is something you usually don't see.
These supernatural happenings are everyday things. One of the camera men even asks why people don't just move away instead of staying and dealing with the supernatural foes. The reply? It's their home, would you leave? They make a good point. Except for the being undead and drinking blood parts these cops seem to be dealing with the same things that real cops handle every day. The show could be a commentary on the craziness that people and cops are dealing with in the real world. We may not have zombies but we do have drugs, crime, and prostitution that can be just as bad.
Although the show is full of laughs there is an overkill of sexual innuendos. A few are funny but when they keep coming up they really get boring. There is a lack of back story. The audience is thrown into the action immediately following two cops running after a zombie and that's a little jolting for a first episode. This leaves you wondering where these supernatural beings even came from.
If you like zombies and shows like Cops you will like this show. There are a lot of laughs to be had and lots of zombie killing. It's a nice 30 minute show to watch and take a break from the stresses of life without having to think too hard.