By Kari Croop , based on child development research. How do we rate?
Soapy whodunit mixes murder, drugs, and family dysfunction.
Parents need to know that American Gothic centers on a string of serial killings that aren't particularly bloody, as the killer's MO is to strangle victims with a belt. That said, you'll see shots of dead bodies, witness a man on life support dying in a hospital bed, and meet a young boy who has a disturbing…
Steamy kissing and extramarital affairs (including a same-sex encounter); sex is
Drinking, Drugs & SmokingAn important character struggles with a heroin addiction; social drinking.
Violence & ScarinessThe series centers on a string of serial killings, though it isn't particularly
Characters use words such as "damn" and "hell."
Products & Purchases Not presentMajor themes include deception, family dysfunction, and murder -- and there aren
Positive Role ModelsThough a few characters seem to act in pursuit of the truth, an overwhelming num
Steamy kissing and extramarital affairs (including a same-sex encounter); sex is implied with bare shoulders in bedclothes, but no sensitive parts are shown.
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Major themes include deception, family dysfunction, and murder -- and there aren't always clear consequences for negative behaviors.
Though a few characters seem to act in pursuit of the truth, an overwhelming number use deception to obscure their own agendas. Most of the Hawthornes have ulterior motives -- and some are harboring dark secrets, including a child who's unnaturally obsessed with death.
Parents need to know that American Gothic centers on a string of serial killings that aren't particularly bloody, as the killer's MO is to strangle victims with a belt. That said, you'll see shots of dead bodies, witness a man on life support dying in a hospital bed, and meet a young boy who has a disturbing preoccupation with death and, at one point, disfigures a neighborhood cat. There's also some steamy sexual stuff, including implied sex and an extramarital encounter, along with audible words such as "hell" and "damn." Characters drink socially, and one family member struggles with heroin addiction.
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Exploring the interplay between artifice and art, AMERICAN GOTHIC centers on a prominent Boston family that's forced to reexamine everything when an accident unearths evidence that one of them is a serial killer. Suspects include family patriarch Mitchell (Jamey Sheridan) and his wife, Madeline (Virginia Madsen), a couple who built their wealth from humble beginnings; their estranged older son, Garrett (Antony Starr), who's been living off the grid for more than a decade; their take-charge daughter, Alison (Juliet Rylance), who's running for mayor; and their youngest son, Cam (Justin Chatwin), a single father struggling with addiction.
Though it's chock-full of artsy references that go way beyond Grant Wood's iconic painting, this gimmicky attempt at a cultured mystery largely feels like a misfire. From a lesbian affair that feels forced and contrived to an estranged brother who not-so-subtly shaves his beard with a hunting knife (not to mention a loyal family groundskeeper named Gunther), these are concepts you might come up with while thumbing through a book of Mad Libs. Which actually makes the whole thing rather funny, though we're not quite sure that's the intent.
And yet, problems aside, American Gothic is still fairly watchable, and you'll find yourself wanting to know who did it in spite of your better judgment. Madsen is effectively chilly as the family matriarch with shadowy motives, and the child actor playing her death-obsessed grandson adds some uncomfortably dark humor to the proceedings. It's also kind of fun to hunt for art references hidden in between the bad dialogue, including a clever visual nod to "Whistler's Mother" at the end of the pilot and allusions to the works of Edward Hopper and Georgia O'Keeffe.
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