‘Bates Motel’: how horror and TV now get along

Once upon a time television and horror just did not gel. The combination was ghastly alright; in fact a fuckup of Frankenstein-like proportions. No, scrap that: tackier.

You had really naff productions like the Tales From The Crypt and Tales From The Dark Side series whose budgets appeared to extend to a packet of plasticine and a bucket of fake blood. Or you had potentially brilliant thrillers a la Alfred Hitchcock’s which were ultimately toned down for ‘family viewing’ and hence would have been better kept on paper.

Fast forward to the here and now and TV is positively brimming with brilliant horror series. From the fantastical likes of True Blood and Supernatural to over-the-top extrapolations of that which could actually happen – serial murder multiplied by a hundred in Dexter; cannibalism gone gourmet in Hannibal – it seems every network is dishing up more guts-and-gore than ever before.

But when television producers manage to take the premise of a classic film, imagine what the backstory of each of its characters might have been, and turn this into a palatable series – that, dear friends, is genius. Case in point: Bates Motel.

The series posits the main character of Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho – Norman Bates – in the modern age, and sees him move in with his mother into a decrepit motel bought for next-to-nothing. But the price they pay is bigger than expected when shady circumstances start taking shape around them: drug dealing, rape, murder…

Soon, mother and son become unsuspecting killers themselves and witnessing them covering their tracks is half the viewing adventure.

Season One of Bates Motel is addictive from the get-go, with Freddie Highmore ditching his Charlie-from-the-Chocolate-Factory persona for something more sinister. Somewhat naïv, yet, but very sinister. His mother Norma is played wonderfully well by Academy Award nominee Vera Farmiga, who’s presence is very much like “that accident you just can’t turn away from”.

What we’ve seen so far of Season Two is just as addictive. Never too over-the-top in its narrative; and always relatable with its characters – even the shadier ones (come on, we’ve all got a few shady ones in our lives, even if they aren’t outright murderers).

If you’ve not seen this series yet, and possess more than a penchant for horror, I’d strongly recommend you hopping online or in-store to buy it. Or try winning a copy in the competition below!  Antonino Tati

Bates Motel: Season 1’ is available on Blu-ray and DVD through Universal Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Cream has 10 copies on Blu-ray to give away. To try winning one, email your Name, Address and the Subject heading ‘Bates’ to cream@pobox.com by 5pm AWST, Friday 5 December.