It's a very banal thing to say of an anthology, but this is rather uneven. The production is consistently high-end, with most episode mixing horror with a specific period background, with lush costumes and sets. The acting varies but is on the whole rather good, but the writing is less convincing: as often in this format the pacing is uneven, some characters are interesting while others are lacking depth. In part this is due to the tone of each episode varying greatly, from the comedic to the psychological, but in part it has also to do with varying abilities.
Lot 36 is a classic, pulpy occult horror, competently assembled but without outstanding ambition. Graveyard Rats oscillates between the grotesque and the fantastic, with some interesting characters too room for them to shine. The Autopsy stands out as an interesting huis clos, a tight plot and some excellent acting, despite a slightly self-involved plot. The outside is a biting Goop satire, which lacks a little in rhythm but pulls all the stops and offers a one-of-a-kind (im)morality tale... full disclosure: I am also a little in love with the lead actress.
Pickman's Model and Dreams in the Witch House were both disappointing. Lovecraft was a brilliant mythologist but a mediocre writer, and I don't think his tales make the best movies: they are either too much, and veer on the kitsch, or not enough, and bore their audience. Despite heroic attempts at fleshing them out, we end up with a series of trite and utterly predictable high-society scenes (Pickman's), or some world-hopping fantasy largely devoid of angst (Dreams). The Viewing was for me the weakest episode, with poor writing a very weak plot, passing itself as a 'homage'. The director evidently had discovered a great set (Panton/Brutalism) and all the rest came as an afterthought.
It is nonetheless worth wading through the second half series, because of the final episode, 'The Murmuring', which is a sensitive, well-acted, well-scripted 'classic' ghost story with an interesting ornithological background, which could have also made a fine feature-length movie. Not the most original, but probably the most competently filmed episode of the season.
On the whole it is worth your time. Not all is good, but all is interesting. Even in the poorer episodes, some good ideas can be found, though they seem to have suffered from immaturity. Perhaps a choice between the comedic and the gothic ends of the horror spectrum would have given the unity of tone, which the anthology lacks in comparison to, say, Black Mirror.
Lot 36 is a classic, pulpy occult horror, competently assembled but without outstanding ambition. Graveyard Rats oscillates between the grotesque and the fantastic, with some interesting characters too room for them to shine. The Autopsy stands out as an interesting huis clos, a tight plot and some excellent acting, despite a slightly self-involved plot. The outside is a biting Goop satire, which lacks a little in rhythm but pulls all the stops and offers a one-of-a-kind (im)morality tale... full disclosure: I am also a little in love with the lead actress.
Pickman's Model and Dreams in the Witch House were both disappointing. Lovecraft was a brilliant mythologist but a mediocre writer, and I don't think his tales make the best movies: they are either too much, and veer on the kitsch, or not enough, and bore their audience. Despite heroic attempts at fleshing them out, we end up with a series of trite and utterly predictable high-society scenes (Pickman's), or some world-hopping fantasy largely devoid of angst (Dreams). The Viewing was for me the weakest episode, with poor writing a very weak plot, passing itself as a 'homage'. The director evidently had discovered a great set (Panton/Brutalism) and all the rest came as an afterthought.
It is nonetheless worth wading through the second half series, because of the final episode, 'The Murmuring', which is a sensitive, well-acted, well-scripted 'classic' ghost story with an interesting ornithological background, which could have also made a fine feature-length movie. Not the most original, but probably the most competently filmed episode of the season.
On the whole it is worth your time. Not all is good, but all is interesting. Even in the poorer episodes, some good ideas can be found, though they seem to have suffered from immaturity. Perhaps a choice between the comedic and the gothic ends of the horror spectrum would have given the unity of tone, which the anthology lacks in comparison to, say, Black Mirror.