Tag: april 2018

Britney Spears sends message of acceptance & love | 29th Annual GLAAD Media Awards

Ricky Martin, star of The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, brought Spears up onstage. “Nine years ago, when I became a father, I knew I had to publicly come out; it was not easy. But I met GLAAD, and I am so grateful they were there to help me. This year, I felt like I had a mission to play Gianni Versace’s lover, Antonio D’Amico, and bring awareness to this tragic story. GLAAD knows that sharing our stories is what accelerates acceptance, and sadly, the lives of LGBTQ people—famous or not—are still at risk,” he told the audience. “We must all find our own ways to fight against injustice, whether it is directed at us, LGBTQ people, at immigrants, or at my fellow Puerto Ricans, who are still without food, water and power.”

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

Ricky Martin describes his role in American Crime Story 2 as ‘intense’

Ryan Murphy’s Versace: American Crime Story centres on the 1997 murder of Donatella Versace’s brother, designer Gianni Versace. After returning from a morning walk, the 50-year-old was shot dead on the steps of his Miami Beach mansion by serial killer Andrew Cunanan. Cunanan wasn’t caught by police but killed himself nine days later while on a houseboat in Miami. In this season, Ricky Martin plays Antonio D’Amico, and he gets talking about stepping into the acting world, balancing home and work, and coming out. Excerpts.

Tell us about your association with Antonio
We have spoken a lot, and obviously, he’s been incredibly helpful and so open in sharing his emotions regarding all this. I really needed to ask deep stuff because it’s challenging and the script is asking for it.  So I just wanted to do justice to his love with Gianni. He was extremely open.  He was very organised with everything that had to do with the empire. But at the end of the day when he was going to take a shower, he would take his clothes and he would leave a mess.That’s when Antonio comes in. He would help him to pick up the clothes that he left behind and it was very, it’s very much about caretaking.

What was it like playing the character Antonio, who loved Gianni so deeply?
In the ’90s I was hiding my boyfriends. I was very egotistical, self-centred and I didn’t care what people who were open about their sexuality felt.  But since it was about me, I needed to keep it quiet because in my head, I had this illusion that if I came out, everything was going to collapse. So when I did the scene, I could see Gianni’s side and Antonio’s side and me playing both because I’ve been in both situations.  So it was beautiful not just to do it, but to be able to talk about this.When I came out, a lot of people around me, people that I loved, begged me not to do it. I did it because I had to, and then it was fantastic.  But this is a story that brings a lot of themes to the table once again.

What have you learned about love after working on this show?
That you’ve got to be loud, open and transparent. The control aspect that society brings into what a relationship must be — break it, erase it and see love as a white canvas that you can throw all the colours and the brush strokes you want.  

You’ve stepped into the acting world.  Do you feel reinvented by this?
Literally, yes of course. But the most significant acting role dramatic role that I had up until today is my first one when I was 15 years old in a TV series that I did in Argentina because I had no life experiences when I was 15 years old.

How did you and your family deal with this transition of you becoming an actor?
I was very happy that I was shooting those scenes in Miami because my husband or my kids weren’t with me. They bring out the best in me.There were very dark scenes and I needed to stay in that bubble. So, it was a week of being very methodical and living as Antonio. When I went back to the hotel, I would just cry. It took me time to decompress. It was very intense.

Ricky Martin describes his role in American Crime Story 2 as ‘intense’

‘Rellik’: TV Review

“Rellik” is “killer” spelled backwards.

It’s also the title of a new Cinemax drama series, the second show this spring to follow a serial killer case reverse-chronologically. Had Cinemax been able to premiere Rellik timed to its initial launch on BBC One last fall, it would have looked like the tricky progenitor and Tom Rob Smith’s work on The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story might have looked like an imitator, but instead American audiences are getting this one reverse-chronologically.

Actually, being able to watch Rellik and The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story basically back-to-back is an illuminating look at the advantages and disadvantages of storytellers creating obstacles for themselves in constructing otherwise familiar genre stories. Rellik creators Harry and Jack Williams are no strangers to experimenting with formal complications after The Missing and Liar and they commit much more thoroughly and much more intriguingly to the Memento-like structure over the first five episodes of their six-episode drama. It’s novelist Smith, however, who found a way to make a gimmick structure pay off in terms of character development (even if he just made Andrew Cunnan into a half-Filipino Tom Ripley), while Rellik sells out its gimmick entirely with a finale that’s an exercise only in exposition and flimsy psychological motivation.

[…] What shows like Rellik and The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story are doing is acknowledging the entrenchment of crime investigation structure developed over decades of TV procedurals. The extra step that Gianni Versace only sometimes took and that Rellik rarely takes is progressing beyond cleverness into narrative rewards. The title itself reflects a series with an “Aren’t we cute?” indulgence that doesn’t deepen after you’ve said, “Yeah, I get it.”

‘Rellik’: TV Review

Feinberg Forecast: First Read on 2018 Emmys Race

The charts below reflect how THR’s awards columnist Scott Feinberg believes the Emmy standings would look if voting ended today. They are formulated using a combination of personal impressions (from sampling many programs), historical considerations (how other shows with similar pedigrees have resonated), precursor awards (some groups have historically correlated with the TV Academy more than others) and consultations with industry insiders (including voters, content creators, awards strategists and fellow members of the press).

Best Limited Series

FRONTRUNNERS

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (FX)

Best Actor in a Limited Series or a Television Movie

FRONTRUNNERS

Darren Criss (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)

Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or a Television Movie

FRONTRUNNERS

Edgar Ramirez (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)

MAJOR THREATS

Ricky Martin (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)

POSSIBILITIES

Cody Fern (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)

Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Television Movie

FRONTRUNNERS

Penelope Cruz (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)
Judith Light (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story)

Feinberg Forecast: First Read on 2018 Emmys Race

American Crime Story: Season 2 review | The Saint

Last year American Crime Story found critical and popular acclaim under the helm of Brad Falchuk, Nina Jacobson and Ryan Murphy with account of “The People Vs O J Simpson”. They are back now with season two, which has recently finished its run in the US and midway through its UK stint, to provide us with another account of a uniquely and peculiarly American crime story. This season’s tale recounts the horrific and mysterious assassination of Gianni Versace.

Gianni Versace was shot on the steps of his Miami home on 15 July 1997 by Andrew Cunanan who had in the three months prior murdered four other men. The show examines why Cunanan decided to shoot Versace that day. This question is shrouded in a haze of ambiguity and we will never get an objective answer from the killer himself. However, from second-hand accounts and Maureen Orth’s controversial book on the matter, the show runners piece together a plausible account of Cunanan’s descent into evil. However, this is not the only story that the show tells. In its portrayal of these particular crimes the show exposes certain narratives that governed American society in the ‘90s and arguably still today. Just as “The People Vs O J Simpson” exposed America’s attitudes to race and class, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace” examines homophobia, mental illness and our relationship with success and fame. These are issues that are universal yet also particularly American. The show has its faults but the discussions it raises and the exceptional performances of its main cast mean it is still a compelling watch.

The narrative structure of the season is daring and sometimes this is effective and other times it falters. One of the strongest criticisms of this season is that for a show with Gianni Versace in the title, said titular character does not feature as much as you might expect. I myself was disappointed by the absence of the Versaces in many episodes. The sheer fabulous vision and voice of Penelope Cruz as Donatella Versace leaves an unfillable void whenever the show leaves their side. The show is far more about Cunanan’s history than it is Versace’s, and it is probable that the title was a decision made for the sole purpose of bringing in more viewers. However, perhaps there is a deeper, less cynical reading of this decision. Even though Versace’s role in the show is relatively small, that name and all it has come to represent is critical in the show. Cunanan is possessed by fame, success and glamour. He clamours after these images of people he ought to be and people he thinks he deserves to be. It also mirrors the reaction of the time. A celebrity being murdered brings the world shuddering to a halt whereas the murder of four unknown gay men barely has us feather the brakes. Fame and image are two notions that still have an immeasurable impact on how we live our lives and thus makes for valuable discussion in this show. Many of the episodes are dedicated to unpicking the tragic ends of Cunanan’s other victims. We are also given an insight into the stories of these people and the challenges that marked their lives independent of their tragic ends.

The season is also an exploration of homophobia in the ‘90s and a troubling picture is painted that draws parallels with today. Antonio, Versace’s partner, is subjected to many violations and microaggressions throughout the season. It is a nuanced portrayal of a homophobic society that is not necessarily explicitly egregious to gay men but does so much to deny them equal rights that they are left floating in an ether knowing that there are no safety nets beneath them. One of the most harrowing concepts to come to terms with in the season is that Antonio’s grief is never validated and so he has a crucial part of his personhood slowly chipped away by the people around him.

As well as encapsulating pertinent issues of the time and forcing us to reflect on their relevance today, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace” also boasts some amazing cinematography and a brilliant soundtrack. Dreamlike sequences with saturated colours help to convey visually the subjectivity of Cunanan’s narrative. The musical choices help to immerse the viewer in the time period and play into the sometimes melodramatic tones of the season. The narrative arc is ambitious. Beginning and ending with Cunanan’s final crime and in the in-between taking us all the way back to his childhood and back again. Branching off from this are the stories of Cunanan’s victims and their families. At times this vision does not pay off and certain important moments lose their power; however, this weaving allows the show to encompass more issues that make it America’s crime story and not just Cunanan’s. It is also refreshing to see a show break away from formulaic ways of storytelling.

“American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace” provides us much to unpack in its nine episodes and each is well-crafted with excellent performances. The show presents itself as an object for reflection and it is worthy of our attention.

American Crime Story: Season 2 review | The Saint

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, episode 7, review – all blinged up with nowhere to go

★★★☆☆

I believe that for a woman, a dress is a weapon to get what she wants.” So declared Donatella Versace with a power-pout and a toss of her peroxide mane. Sadly, it wasn’t sartorial weapons she needed.  

Last night, we reached the seventh episode of the high-camp docudrama The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (BBC Two), which continues to chart the events that led to the 1997 shooting of Italian designer Gianni Versace (Édgar Ramírez) on the doorstep of his Miami mansion.

In 1992, Versace was diagnosed with a rare form of ear cancer, forcing younger sister Donatella (Penélope Cruz) to take the fashion house’s reins. Almost literally so – a leather-strapped bondage dress became the siblings’ first collaboration. Meanwhile in San Diego, delusional sociopath and budding serial killer Andrew Cunanan (creepy Darren Criss, who, along with Cruz, is the star of this show) conned his way into a lavish new life by targeting wealthy older men.

The first of his targets, architect Lincoln Aston (Todd Waring), ended up savagely beaten to death – a shock scene of gore amid the gloss. The second, silver fox businessman Norman Blachford (Michael Nouri), allowed Cunanan to move into his minimalist mansion. “Oh, if only they could see me now,” murmured Cunanan, taking in the ocean view from a vast glass balcony. “Who?” asked Blachford. “Everyone,” came Cunanan’s chilling reply.  

Written by British export Tom Rob Smith, this was a souped-up soap opera, dripping in gaudy bling and unfolding in designer beige interiors. All gilt mirrors, baroque chairs and creamy soft furnishings, it’s styled like a luxury hotel lobby and rollicks along like an afternoon true-crime movie, albeit a well-appointed one. You half-expect Columbo, Murder She Wrote’s Jessica Fletcher or Hart to Hart’s millionaire spouses to turn up and solve the impending murder.

There are two episodes of the nine-part series still to come, but thus far a convoluted flashback structure has prevented it from hitting the heights of its predecessor, The People vs OJ Simpson. While the time-hopping approach might fill in the background and motivation, it hardly adds much in the way of forward momentum. The hypnotic horror we saw earlier in the series – episodes three to five were masterful, the next two less so – has given way to middling drama. As a guilty pleasure, though, it’s grim, fascinating and just gripping enough.

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, episode 7, review – all blinged up with nowhere to go

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story: Ascent – S2

The lies continue to slip off Andrew Cunanan’s tongue. He changes his
surname, his parentage, his racial identity, his education, his occupation and even his interests more frequently than his socks. He even utilises other people’s memories if he feels it would impress or endear him to someone.

But if you’re wondering why so many apparently intelligent people fell for his fantasies, this episode explains it a little. We see how he cleverly targeted Norman Blachford (who survived Andrew’s killing spree) and how he dazzled David Madson (who did not) with his apparently glamorous lifestyle. Darren Criss is equally dazzling as Cunanan.

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story: Ascent – S2