Bates Motel- Series Review
Right, so I understand that there are 5 seasons of this show but Netflix only had 3 available (as always, Australian Netflix doesn't update ever and has little choice). Something I didn't know about this series, was that it was inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. It features the talents of Vera Farmiga, Freddie Highmore, Max Thieriot and Olivia Cooke.
The general synopsis of this show is that after an unfortunate accident, mother Norma and son Norman Bates move from Arizona to Oregon in hope of starting a new life. At first, the town seems promising with Norma investing in a motel and forming an unbreakable bond with Norman but tragedy seems to follow the two no matter where they go.
The performances: Vera Farmiga plays the role of Norma Louise Bates, the motel owner and mother of Norman. Norma Bates is actually a proper character who appeared in Psycho but this version is more of a prequel style (keep that in mind) and vastly different. Characteristically, she is over-protective, possessive and at times, risqué. Vera is such a timeless woman and I really appreciated her acting abilities in this series. She was able to pull of someone ever present both physically and mentally, as well as create some kind of disturbing reaction from me. I think at times her acting went a little under my radar with some of the plot but I'll get to that later.
Freddie Highmore plays the role of Norman Bates, a fragile and mentally disturbed son of Norma. Originally, Norman Bates as a character was inspired by an infamous serial killer Ed Gein, which would explain the sadistic facial expressions and undertones of mental illness. There were parts in this series where I thought Freddie's acting was a little wooden or too exaggerated but he managed to turn that around for me and I was very impressed by that. Freddie successfully carried his role from a poor, bastard child who we pity to a very haunting creature in the corner of our eye.
Watch out people, my favourite actor of this entire series is of course Max Thieriot (who plays Dylan Massett). It was weird for me to see him in the show after having no clue he was even in it. I remember falling in love with him in The Pacifier. Anyway, when his character appeared I instantly knew something was up, but as his backstory progressed (also assisting Norma's) I was even more awed. Even though Max's acting doesn't stand out too much, his is a vital character in carrying the plot with many surprises along the way.
Lastly, Olivia Cooke who plays the role of Emma DeCody, a sensitive and softly-spoken girl who works at the motel occasionally. Olivia seems to have this entire role in the bag even if it were to just rely on her physical appearance. She's cute and has these innocent doe-eyes that make you just want to love her throughout the entirety of the show. I have to withhold a bit of information about her character because it would spoil parts of the plot but while her character may not always be 100% necessary, she is definitely put to good use. Even if sometimes it appears to be plot filler, she never lets her characterisation stray and always seems to give her all.
The Cons: I'm so disappointed in Netflix for not updating. There are 2 more seasons that I'm missing out here so this entire review has literally been covering season 1-3. If it updates again, I'll make sure to edit this. Anyway, there were a few issues with this series but nothing too drastic. At first, I wasn't too hyped about this show because season 1 seemed to drag on quite a bit and I felt like procrastinating rather than watching because my attention was so not there. Most introductions do start out slow and the pace did quicken towards the end but I wished that they could have sped the
process up just a little while still obtaining some necessary features. Not everything in this show was necessary but maybe you'll come to see this if you watch it. When I was discussing Norma's role, I found that she went under my radar a bit. This was because parts of the plot seemed to overshadow her or write her off. Obviously that changed but I wasn't too impressed there. And again, there were a few unnecessary characters or some wooden doll performances in particular parts but here's hoping that when the next 2 seasons make an appearance, things will clear up.
This show is an interesting take on the 1960 Alfred Hitchcock classic, Psycho and provides a new perspective in characterisation. There's barely any chance for this show to be remembered as a classic, unlike Psycho but it still has some credibility and was an interesting watch. Give it a shot and tell me what you think.
Score: 6.5/10