Friday’s “Two plane crash TV shows, Benedict Cumberbatch joins Crimson Peak and a trailer for Endeavour” news

Film casting

Trailers

UK TV

US TV

US TV casting

New US TV shows

  • SyFy developing plan crash thriller
  • Ryan Murphy pitching Open
  • Adult Swim green lights pilot for Hole To Hole
  • Sander/Moses working on remake of Turkish plane crash thriller The End
  • Pivot picks up sexy Shakespeare drama Will [subscription required]

New US TV show casting

The BarrometerA Barrometer rating of 3

Third-episode verdict: Bates Motel (A&E)

In the US: Mondays, 10/9c, A&E

Bates Motel is a salutary lesson in how The Carusometer and The Barrometer are vital tools in measuring a show’s worth. The simple fact is that the first episode of seemingly every new show these days is unrepresentative of how it’s going to turn out in later episodes.

The problem with the first episode of Bates Motel, ostensibly a prequel to Psycho but bizarrely set in the modern day instead, was there was actually very little to it beyond the trappings of the original movie: yes, the Bates Motel is there, Norman’s there, his mother’s there and there’s a murder in the motel. But that’s about it. Beyond a liking for some dodgy manga, there’s no sign of Norman’s incipient insanity and problems with women – in fact, implausibly for such a nerd with an over-protective mother, not one but two women are now interested in him. It’s Psycho without a psycho, livened up with a bit of violence.

Since then, the show has metamorphosed into something completely different. The second episode introduced us not only to Norman’s estranged brother, but also an unexpected mystery element for the show: what secret do the townsfolk have? Where do they get all their money from, despite largely making organic artisanal cheeses? Together with his cystic-fibrosis afflicted British gal pal from Manchester (Olivia Cooke from The Secret of Crickley Hall, nevertheless putting on a US accent, presumably because Norman himself, played by fellow Brit Freddie Highmore, is faking a US accent, too), Norman goes off investigating using the manga he’s found – which might actually tell a true story – and discovers more than he bargains for. That takes off even further in the third episode, as they heroically try to find the abducted girls depicted in the book.

On top of that, episode three gives us a mysterious illness for Norman, after which he starts to have bizarre hallucinations in which his (still living) mother gives him somewhat homicidal advice. Whether the illness caused the hallucinations or whether they’ve always been there, we’ve yet to see. The producers are also giving Vera Farmiga more of the look of a Hitchcockian blonde, just for laughs, and have dialled down the violence against women, which can only be a good thing. The relationship between Norman and his mother is becoming as unpleasantly flirtatious and close as you’d expect, too.

It’s still not a brilliant show. It’s certainly weird and has a decent cast. It can be creepy, too. It’s now well on its way to becoming a prequel to Psycho, rather than something that takes the name and little else. The tension of whether the crime committed in the first episode will get exposed does add a little extra frisson to things, too, and the character relationships are more involving than you might think, even if Norman does end up being a bit of a dick a lot. And then there’s now the question of whether anything we see can be trusted because it might all be an hallucination (although Perception does that a lot better).

But because this is a prequel to Psycho and so there are few surprises in where the show’s ultimate destination is, to string the plot out, the show has largely had to become something else completely unrelated and highly implausible. What’s being exposed isn’t that enticing and because the show is essentially about a psycho who does bad things to women thanks to schizophrenia, multiple personality disorder or some other mental health problem, the show has a central misogyny to navigate, something that it doesn’t manage without being partially voyeuristic itself.

All the same, it’s definitely improving so I’ll keep my eye on it in case the upward tick in quality continues.

Barrometer rating: 3
Rob’s prediction: Might just scrape a second season

Huey Lewis and Weird Al turn the tables on American Psycho

Both American Psycho and the movie adaptation, American Psycho, notoriously mocked the blander parts of US society in a series of coruscating monologues from its lead character, Patrick Bateman. One of those skewered by the movie was Huey Lewis and the News.

Now, the bland are getting their revenge. Here’s Huey Lewis assuming the Christian Bale part to monologue his revenge on both the movie and Weird Al Yankovic in this entirely bizarre video.

Thursday’s “Sky Atlantic and Canal+’s Panthers, ITV’s The Guilty and David Tennant Dr Who location pics” news

Doctor Who

Film

Film casting

Trailers

  • Trailer for Nicolas Winding Refn’s Only God Forgives with Ryan Gosling [NSFW]
  • Trailer for James DeMonaco’s The Purge with Ethan Hawke
  • Teaser for The Hunger Games 2
  • Teaser for the Carrie remake

Canadian TV

UK TV

US TV

US TV casting

New US TV shows

  • Cinemax orders pilot for based on Max Allan Collins’ Quarry

New US TV show casting

  • Emma Rigby joins ABC’s Once Upon A Time In Wonderland

The Wednesday Play: Hedda Gabler (1972)

Hedda Gabler is generally considered one of the great dramatic roles in theatre. The heroine (of sorts) of Ibsen’s eponymous play, she is a woman who has recently married, not out of love but because she thinks her years of youthful abandon are over. Into her life comes the writer and her former lover Eilert Lovborg, who throws both her and her new husband’s life into disarray.

Since its 1890 publication, Hedda Gabler has been performed many, many times all over the world. Indeed, Sheridan Smith did a superb job back in September at the Old Vic last year. However, back in October 1972, it was Janet Suzman’s turn to play Gabler in Waris Hussein’s production for BBC Play of the Month. Co-staring (Sir) Ian McKellen has Gabler’s husband, Tom Bell as Lovborg and Jane Asher as Lovborg’s lover Thea Elvsted, it’s generally considered to be one of the best adaptions ever recorded, with Suzman more or less perfect as Gabler.

So enjoy!