A REVIEW OF “THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AN AMERICAN CRIME STORY”

For this week’s issue of tidbits, I would like to talk to you
all about one of the most incredible television shows I
have ever watched. The show was a limited series, only
nine episodes, and was entitled “The Assassination
of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.” The series
dealt with the murder of Italian fashion designer, Gianni
Versace, who was killed by serial killer Andrew Cunanan.
But, not only did the series deal with Versace’s death, it
also dove into the murders of Cunanan’s four other victims
and showed audiences the type of person Cunanan
was. This is not going to be a detailed synopsis of the
show and nor will it be a “news-type” article of these horrific
events. Instead, I am going to provide my thoughts on
the show and hopefully give all of you a reason to want to
watch it. Because, believe me, it was an incredible show.
Before I began watching, I had no idea who Gianni
Versace was. I hadn’t even known he existed, let alone
was murdered. And, in all honesty, I never planned to
watch the show. I had seen trailers for it on TV but I was
never THAT interested. See, the thing about me is, 90
percent of the time I watch a new show or movie, my interest
comes from the fact that there is someone I like in the
show. And that wasn’t the case for this show. But, more
and more, I started seeing it everywhere and so I decided
to give it a chance. And I am so glad I did, because wow
oh wow, what an incredible piece of television.
Okay, I know I said this won’t be a detailed synopsis,
but let me just provide a quick run-down of the events
behind the show. Andrew Cunanan was a young man
who, at the age of 27, embarked on a killing spree. He
killed five men—Jeffrey Trail, David Madson, Lee Miglin,
William Reese and Gianni Versace—between May 1997
and July 1997, before taking his own life. All of the victims,
save Reese, had previously encountered Cunanan.
The show brought about different depictions of Cunanan,
including him being someone who liked to make embellishments
on his life, so as to give off the impression he
was richer and more impressive than he
actually was. Of course, I don’t have any
way to fact check if what they showed on
the series is actually true, so I take all
this information with a grain of salt. One
thing is for sure though, Cunanan was a
despicable person.
The show itself followed a type of
back-and-forth method to showcase all
the murders, as well as show the various
encounters Cunanan’s victims had with
their murderer. The show also included
pieces of Cunanan’s childhood, Versace’s
childhood and the pasts of his other victims.
It depicted Jeffrey Trail’s life as a
gay man in the Navy during the Don’t Ask,
Don’t Tell era. It showed David Madson’s
original meeting with Cunanan. It showed
the successes of real estate developer
and business tycoon, Lee Miglin. It
showed absolutely EVERYTHING (or so I
assume). Of course, like I said, this all has
to be taken with a grain of salt, since the
key players are all passed and we cannot
check if the information depicted in the
show is correct. But I think it’s safe to say
that the depictions in the show were not
far from what happened in actuality.
Okay, but enough about the show itself.
I don’t want to tell you too much, because
I want you all to watch it. Let’s talk about
the actors. Every single actor—from the
ones who played the key players to the
ones who played family, friends and just
people who had encounters with the
key players—were incredible. The cast
consisted of Édgar Ramírez as Versace, Darren Criss as
Cunanan, Ricky Martin as Antonio D’Amico (Versace’s
partner) and Penelope Cruz as Donatella Versache
(Versache’s sister). It also starred Finn Wittrock as Trail,
Cody Fern as Madson, Mike Farrell as Miglin, Gregg
Lawrence as Reese, Judith Light as Miglin’s wife, Marilyn
and Jon Jon Briones and Joanna Adler as Cunanan’s
parents. Every single one of these cast members brought
the person they were portraying to life, better than I would
have expected. Penelope Cruz, Ricky Martin and Judith
Light did such an amazing job in portraying the grief a
partner and sibling would feel when they lose their loved
one. The tears they shed and emotions they brought
forward seemed so real and were so raw, that—for a split
second—you forget they are actors.
Every single actor was incredible and the cast was
extremely well-chosen. But I would like to give a special
mention to Darren Criss. Now, Criss was one of the only
actors on the show who I was previously aware of. I
mean, apart from Criss, Cruz, Martin and Wittrock, I had
never heard of the other actors. But Criss was the only
one I had previously seen—in the show, Glee. This was
the show in which he played the happy-go-lucky, friendly
and kind Blaine Anderson. So I was a bit skeptical as to
whether he would be able to convincingly portray someone
as horrible as Cunanan. Well, he did. He completely
transformed and was able to showcase Cunanan for
everything he was. And the funny thing is that, even
though I was looking right at his face and could see that
it was Criss, I was having trouble making that connection
that this was the same man who was in Glee and who
played Harry Potter in A Very Potter Musical. And each
week, when he did something terrifying and unsettling in
the show, I would sit back and say “this is the same guy
who played Blaine. How? HOW?” Every single episode
he reached new heights, that I didn’t think were possible.
And, in all honestly, if I happened to see him—in person—
immediately after watching the show, I’d be wary for a
split second. But, only for a split second and then I’d get
over it, because he’s an actor and I know that.
And the music. Oh my goodness, the music. The songs
they included during certain scenes just made them all
the more emotional or terrifying. There was a particular
scene at the end of Episode Five, which showed the murder
of Trail and then cut to a scene that showcased the
camera panning around Trail’s empty room intertwined
with somber music and message on his answering
machine telling him to come to the hospital to meet his
new niece. And that music, combined with the fact that
viewers knew what had just happened, made me sob.
In fact, many moments in the show made me sob. But
what made it more heartbreaking is that this happened in
real life. These were real people who had futures, goals,
dreams and lives. These were people who had so much
to live for and then had it all taken away from them by a
despicable monster. These were real families and friends
and other loved ones who had to deal with the death of
their loved one and to deal with a pain that will probably
never go away.
In my opinion, the show was brilliant. Take my word for
it. But do watch it for yourself. You can find full episodes
on the FX website. This is going to be one of those shows
that people talk about for months to come.
Picture Source: Wikipedia, ew.com