penelopecruzoficial: Want to hang with my dear friends from American Crime Story? You could watch the #ACSVersacefinale with Ricky Martin and get lunch with Darren Criss—all to support Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Just enter through my bio link or omaze.com/acs. Quieres conocer a mis compañeros de #americancrimestory ? Quieres ver el último capítulo de la serie junto a Ricky Martin o salir a comer con Darren Criss??? Ayúdemos entre todos a los niños de #losangeleschildrenshospital Omaze.com/acs
THE SHOW | The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
THE EPISODE | “Manhunt” (Jan. 24, 2018)
THE PERFORMANCE | Ryan Murphy’s TV shows offer actors a golden opportunity to spread their wings and show a side of themselves we haven’t yet seen. And in its second episode, Versace did just that for Criss, who shed his squeaky-clean Glee past to paint a vivid portrait of a murderer who’s just as charming as he is chilling.
As serial killer Andrew Cunanan, it’s disturbing how easily the lies spilled from Criss’ mouth, as Cunanan bragged about his connections to Versace and his upbringing in France, cold-bloodedly rehearsing his half of the conversation in a mirror beforehand in an attempt to sound “normal.” Criss concealed his Glee-trained pipes as Cunanan fled from authorities while singing (off-key) along with Laura Branigan’s “Gloria” on the car radio — a rare moment of pure elation for the troubled loner. This week’s centerpiece, though, was Cunanan’s riveting rendezvous with an elderly man who paid him for sex, wrapping the man’s entire head in duct tape and dancing to Phil Collins’ “Easy Lover” in his underwear while the man gasped for air. Criss’ intensely blank stare was positively unsettling as Cunanan reveled in the pain he was inflicting, like a shark smelling blood in the water.
Later, in a Miami gay club, Cunanan unspooled another set of lies to a fellow dancer who asked what he did for a living, manically rattling off a list of fake occupations before ending with, “I’m the person least likely to be forgotten.” Thanks to this week’s impressively versatile, chameleon-like performance, Criss’ revelatory work on Versace isn’t likely to be forgotten, either.
Tom Rob Smith seems like a nice enough guy, but many of his works are about grisly murders. His newest project is ‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace,’ FX’s second entry in its American Crime Story anthology. The series examines the murder of the fashion icon, and looks at the lives of the other men who died at the hand of killer Andrew Cunanan. Smith tells us why writing about murder is a useful way of exploring a society.
As great as the premiere of The Assassination of Gianni Versace was, I can’t help but think that its painted itself into a soft pink corner after watching Manhunt. Manhunt is not a bad episode, in fact its very, very good. It’s an episode that serves to explore and layer the two lead characters: murderer and victim, out with the context of the crime itself. If anything, Manhunt feels like a collection of deleted scenes from The Man Who Would be Vogue, that if edited together with the first episode would be something really special.
As it is, Manhunt slows the momentum of the season down with a feeling that American Crime Story is already going in circles. This doesn’t have to be a bad thing, as Andrew’s character necessitates a very real cycle of violence. The truth is that anything to do with Andrew already works like gangbusters, but the same cannot be said about Versace. So, like the episode, lets look at each character separately.
GIANNI VERSACE
Maureen Orth’s book, Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in US History, not only serves as the basis for the series but also contains one of the biggest controversies of the entire story. Orth’s book claims that Versace was HIV Positive at the time of his death, something which his family claims to be a lie. This is a Ryan Murphy production after all so if you bet that he and Tom Rob Smith would use this as a plot point you would be right. This plot point serves as the episodes opening as Versace and his companion Antonio D’Amico, played by the surprisingly impressive Ricky Martin, visit the hospital so Versace can receive treatment form an illness that the script doesn’t name.
We are then shown the consequences of this vague diagnosis as it reverberates among Versace’s closest confidants: his companion and his sister Donatella. Donatella blames Antonio for her brother’s illness which, if this isn’t true, is narrative choice that is in bad taste for everyone involved. At least Tom Rob Smith is aware at how controversial this direction is, but his comments to Vanity Fair, about Roth’s claims don’t really shed much light:
“She has no agenda or reason to push any point of view. She was interested in unpacking some of the myths around the murder, such as that Andrew had AIDS and was killing because of it. In fact, Andrew, this destroyer of life, did not have AIDS, and the person who did have H.I.V. was this great creator and celebrator of life.”
Whether you agree with this direction or not (I’m not a fan), it does serve a dual purpose. The HIV epidemic was still huge in the mid-90s and its effects serve as a narrative parallel between Gianni and Andrew’s closets relations within the episode. For Gianni it brings him closer to a monogamist life with Antonio, but it’s only another platform in which Andrew can perform on.
While Edgar Ramirez and Ricky Martin are clicking, the same cannot be said for Ramirez and Penelope Cruz. As Donatella, Cruz has the Emmy pretty much in the bag, and she excels when the role calls for that inner grit as well as the deep grief she feels at losing her brother. It’s a shame then that the show-stopping scene which the Versace siblings share doesn’t pack the punch its supposed to. It’s certainly interesting: Donatella is Gianni’s first muse and she is trying to help him look past his past success in order to keep up with the industry, but Gianni is high on his own legacy. Both actors are great here, and it’s another great contrast for Andrew’s similar listings of achievements that are nothing more than fiction. There is just a layer of affection missing from Gianni and Donatella’s scenes that is so obviously felt when they talk about each other to everyone else.
ANDREW CUNANAN
Darren Criss continues to blow my mind as Cunanan. He’s so manipulative and needy while watching him I was thinking that I wouldn’t fall for his lies. Of course, I would, that’s why he’s so dangerous. As good as Criss is Manhunt does tend to repeat much of his characterisation without moving the plot forward. Again, this isn’t bad, his relationship with Max Greenfield (who might be the best part of this episode) gives Andrew’s psychology more depth, but it still feels like this should have been part of the first episode.
Even if the show has slightly stalled character-wise, Manhunt does explore the elements of luck that stopped Andrew from being captured. He’s on the FBI’s Most Wanted list before he kills Versace, and the straight as an arrow Federal agents have clumsily profiled him out of the places he inhabits. Perhaps the most interesting factor, apart from Andrew’s high-wire act of constant lies, is how a man’s fear of outing himself after Andrew nearly kills him stopped him from getting caught.
7/10 – The Assassination of Gianni Versace is proving to be a completely different beast from American Crime Story’s first season. While it’s still packed with great performances, and perfect period detail, its structure is holding it back from being truly great. The next obstacle is how the show handles Andrew’s killing spree. The show is already walking a stylistic line reminiscent of American Horror Story, so restraint is the key.
Brett, Ben, Alonso and Meredith review the second episode of American Crime Stories second season about the assassination of Gianni Versace. | 25 January 2018
1994, Miami: Gianni Versace and Antonio D’Amico are in a hospital. Versace confesses to a nurse his fears of dying and recalls the death of a sibling in his childhood. The allusions to AIDS here are not subtle, but a certain poetry is created by using silence around the disease itself — a silence characteristic of that time period. Back at the mansion, Donatella wonders what will become of Versace (the brand) without Gianni.
Donatella confronts D’Amico, implying Versace’s condition is his fault and blaming the excesses of their lifestyle on Versace’s downfall.
Back to 1997 where fans of Versace are putting flowers on the footsteps of his mansion in his memory, shortly after his murder. D’Amico and Donatella’s feud continues, with the latter telling the former, “There’s no need for us to pretend anymore.”
Before the murder of Versace: Cunanan is seen stealing license plates. His mood is elevated as he drives in a red pickup truck, once again demonstrating his disconectedness from his crimes (we get it, Ryan Murphy).
Cunanan checks into a hotel with a fake passport. He’s running out of money but begins looking for drugs anyway. He meets a dealer at the hotel and the two discuss “being sick” — Cunanan claims he worked in an AIDS clinic and has recently lost his best friend and lover. He then goes on to claim Versace had proposed to him in the past. Clearly Cunanan’s life story is pieced together from both lies and truths, and the extent to which he’s even able to separate out which is which is questionable. He claims he could have been a great designer, too.
Police, meanwhile, are hunting for Cunanan in connection with other murders. Their commitment to the hunt is lackadaisical at best.
On South Beach, it doesn’t take long for Cunanan to find an older man to take him home. The two engage in some heavy BDSM while Cunanan expounds on his wealthy upbringing. His John considers calling the police after the scene gets too intense, but decides against it while staring at the ring on his finger.
Donatella and Gianni argue about design philosophy at a fashion show. American Crime Story’s limits reveal themselves here: the recreation of Versace’s looks and presentation (considering the actual house of Versace has disapproved of the TV series) looks impressively cheap and half-assed. The audience within the show claps adoringly at each outfit: hard to suspend disbelief here.
Anyway, Dontatella wonders: will Versace change his brand to reflect the times now that he does not feel conquered by his disease?
Later, D’Amico tells Versace he wants to get married and Versace demures: “You can say it in the morning, but can you say it in the evening?”
With Cunanan’s drug habit getting worse and whatever plaguing his mind deteriorating, he visits a gay club. He’s having some kind of manic fit, unsure of who he is. Credits roll over his confusion.
Murphy once again sets up a dichotomy between seriousness and camp, but the weight is heavier on the former aesthetic. He’s addressing real issues in gay life in the 90’s: both the lavish opulence in spite of crippling disease and the pitiable world of sex work and drug dealing. The two are contrasted sharply with each other throughout the episode: scenes of Versace’s over-stylized palace are contrasted sharply with Cunanan’s flop house. Murphy’s trying to capture something specific to that time period, and his delicacy around the AIDS crisis (mentioned only in the show’s parentheticals) is perhaps the most subtlety he’s ever shown. A thesis statement for his Versace series hasn’t quite yet emerged, but the players have been established and the scenes are set: what he does with the show from here is anyone’s guess.
The second episode, appropriately named, “Manhunt”, continued on the heels of last week’s dramatic episode. The story is being told in a bit of a reverse, back-and-forth manner to elucidate Cunanan’s journey to Miami.
The episode began with a flashback to March 1994, where Versace (Edgar Ramirez) and Antonio (Ricky Martin) are seen lurking the halls of a hospital. While the mystery of Versace’s health remains fairly unknown to this day–the show alludes to the possibility he may have been HIV positive.
His sickness plays a big part in this episode as he battles an “unknown” condition. Donatella (Penelope Cruz) holds his sickness over Antonio’s head, highlighting that their sexual escapades have caused Versace to fall ill. It was interesting to see the show tip-toe around Versace’s health. Perhaps, it was to prevent the wrath of the Versace family that continues to stand by the notion he was HIV negative.
But the subtle hints of his sex life intermingled with the mention of therapy that may help him all pointed to one thing–but we’ll leave that to speculation.
Darren Criss shone once again in this episode–channeling a creepy, sadistic, troubled individual. Unclear as to the timeline of his whereabouts, we see that he is in South Carolina. A pit-stop at an old school Walmart shows him switching out his license plate for another, all while creepily smiling at a little girl watching him in action.
As he prepares to drive away, we hear the news on the radio mention he is a suspect in the murder of Lee Miglin (his third victim). This moment and a highway mile sign clarify that this is before Versace’s death–and Cunanan is acomin’.
Donatella was a bigger part of this episode as she handled the arrangements for Versace’s cremation–which was quite interesting, to say the least. The mortician prepared Versace’s body, “restoring” him back to the way he once looked. This was some epic artistry (if one can call it that), as Versace lay there lifeless in his casket, but made us feel he would wake up at any moment.
And after all that fancy make-up and placing him in a beautiful casket–he was cremated and whisked away to Italy in a gold box.
The FBI was a hot mess this episode as they grappled with the manhunt for Cunanan. Clearly unprepared, the FBI agents were way in over their heads. They had only 10 copies of the wanted poster and no idea where to look for Cunanan.
This would present as a problem at the episode’s end when Andrew Cunanan would use his actual name on the paperwork. A moment when the suspicious pawn shop owner could have reported him–but there was no flier up on her bulletin board about him. Sigh, FBI.
Cunanan’s weird behavior went up a few notches this episode as he found a home in a beachfront hotel, Normandy Plaza. It is here where he meets Ronnie (Max Greenfield) and befriends him and continues to embellish and lie about his life.
One of the most bizarre moments of this episode was Cunanan scoping out elderly men to be an escort for and tormenting one he picks up on the beach. This torture session was inclusive of Cunanan wrapping the man’s face with tape, rendering him unable to breathe as he pranced around the room in his underwear. Suffice to say–he let him live.
While Cunanan’s dark side becomes more apparent this episode, Versace’s health went from dire to optimistic. In fact, Antonio even proposed to him–pledging he wants only him–and not the additional entourage of men in their lives. It was a bittersweet collection of moments in Versace’s life, only to be clouded over what was to come.
Out for a walk, Cunanan stakes out Versace’s home where he sees Versace on the balcony. Frazzled over the unexpected opportunity, he rushes back to the hotel for his gun–and bids farewell forever to Ronnie. Unfortunately for him, when he returns Versace has left for the night.
When murder plans fall through for the night, Cunanan heads to a cafe, where he is recognized by one of the employees (thanks to 90’s hit show, America’s Most Wanted). By the time the police arrive, Cunanan is gone and heads to the club where Versace was at.
The final moments of the episode leave us with a haunting feeling as we quietly hear Cunanan tell someone his full name.
The second episode of this intriguing installment was on par with the premiere–if not better. The story is getting darker, the events are coming together, and we are falling deeper and deeper into the twisted psyche of Andrew Cunanan.
Darren Criss’ performance is unlike anything else–and this episode was no exception. Those particular moments where his eyes went dark or an odd, uncomfortable smile took over his face were unlike anything we’ve seen before.
As the story continues to build, watching these events unfold and watching Criss will be absolutely epic.
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