Before going into this, you need to know, the mystery, the plot twist, the reveal, happens in the third episode. The rest is dealing with the consequences, but this show is a lot more than a mystery and horror show, in fact the horror, too, dissipates around the middle, and there wasn't much to begin with. I'm saying this to manage expectations for anyone reading, because I myself am so limited by my expectations, or more so whether they are met or not. I was disappointed, almost gave up on the show, exactly in the middle (which would be around 25 minutes into episode 4), but then I got it.
I understood that this show was more about addiction, religion, guilt, suffering and the various common denominators between them. It's also about another thing, one that draws, upon realizing it, such obvious parallels to especially the religious themes. This other subject, I won't spoil, but you will find out by episode 3.
I suppose I stayed for the writer/producer/director most of all, because I know that everything Mike Flanagan does, is worth giving a chance, and I'm glad I did.
Last, but not least, I stayed for Hamish Linklater, who as opposed to Flanagan, I didn't know from Adam. But he blew my mind from the very beginning, his character is so deeply ingrained and manifested, that you almost forget you're watching an actor. This is rare, it's Pacino in Scarface, Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight, rare. Either he is a brilliant and somewhat undiscovered talent, or he was simply born for this role.
To sum up, I urge you to not only watch this for the horror or the mystery, but to also watch it for the social commentary, the commentary on religious fanaticism, the acting and the direction, because it's the sum of the parts that make the whole here, and it's a pretty good whole!
I understood that this show was more about addiction, religion, guilt, suffering and the various common denominators between them. It's also about another thing, one that draws, upon realizing it, such obvious parallels to especially the religious themes. This other subject, I won't spoil, but you will find out by episode 3.
I suppose I stayed for the writer/producer/director most of all, because I know that everything Mike Flanagan does, is worth giving a chance, and I'm glad I did.
Last, but not least, I stayed for Hamish Linklater, who as opposed to Flanagan, I didn't know from Adam. But he blew my mind from the very beginning, his character is so deeply ingrained and manifested, that you almost forget you're watching an actor. This is rare, it's Pacino in Scarface, Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight, rare. Either he is a brilliant and somewhat undiscovered talent, or he was simply born for this role.
To sum up, I urge you to not only watch this for the horror or the mystery, but to also watch it for the social commentary, the commentary on religious fanaticism, the acting and the direction, because it's the sum of the parts that make the whole here, and it's a pretty good whole!
