I finally got around to watching the second season of FX’s true crime drama involving Andrew Cunanan and those he killed (Jeffrey Trail, David Madson, Lee Miglin, William Reese, and Gianni Versace). The first season involved O.J. Simpson and the two people he was charged with killing (Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman). The third season’s focus will be on conduct at the Memorial Medical Center, primarily Dr. Anna Pou and the decisions she made, during Hurricane Katrina. The release date has yet to be announced, but is based from Sheri Fink’s book, Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital. If I had to pick which one I preferred between O.J. Simpson and Andrew Cunanan, it was the story about Versace and Cunanan. The main reason being I had less knowledge of who they were as people. The way this murder spree unfolded was loaded with blatant disregard for human life. It’s not that the O.J. Simpson story wasn’t tragic because it was on many levels too. Both had many moving parts involved, but the fact that Cunanan had the FBI and the various police departments seemingly two steps behind him says much to his ability to blend in well among the crowds. The two performances that stood out the most were Sterling K. Brown as Christopher Darden and Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark in the O.J. trial. The portrayals of both O.J. Simpson and Andrew Cunanan were done well, but Darren Criss’s performance as Cunanan was exceptional. Édgar Ramírez as Gianni Versace and Penelope Cruz as Donatella Versace had great chemistry as brother and sister.
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Quote from American Crime Story: The People v. O. J. Simpson by O.J. Simpson
“You got to get it on your own. Nobody can do it for you.”
Creators: Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski
Executive Producers: Larry Karaszewski, Scott Alexander, Brad Falchuk, Brad Simpson, Nina Jacobson, Ryan Murphy, Alexis Martin Woodall, Tom Rob Smith, D.V. DeVincentis, and Daniel Minahan
Directors: Ryan Murphy, Anthony Hemingway, Gwyneth Horder-Payton, Daniel Minahan, John Singleton, Matt Bomer, and Nelson Cragg
Writers: Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski, Jeffrey Toobin, Marueen Orth, Tom Rob Smith, D.V. DeVincentis, Joe Robert Cole, Maya Forbes, Wallace Wolodarsky, and Maggie Cohn
Major Cast: Sterling K. Brown as Christopher Darden, Kenneth Choi as Lance Ito, Christian Clemenson as Bill Hodgman, Cuba Gooding Jr. as O.J. Simpson, Bruce Greenwood as Gil Garcetti, Nathan Lane as F. Lee Bailey, Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark, David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian, John Travolta as Robert Shapiro, Courtney B. Vance as Johnnie Cochran, Tye White as Jason Simpson, Ariel D. King as Arnelle Simpson, Jessica Blair Herman as Kim Goldman, Joseph Siravo as Fred Goldman, Kelly Dowdle as Nicole Brown Simpson, Steven Pasquale as Detective Mark Fuhrman, and Evan Handler as Alan Dershowitz
TV Rating: TV-MA
Episode Number: 10
Running Time: 41-66 minutes
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American Crime Story: People v. O.J. Simpson aired on FX in 2016, totaling 10 episodes regarding the murders of Nicole Simpson Brown and Ron Goldman in 1994 and the trial and its verdict of O.J. Simpson that followed in 1995. Based from the book written by Jeffrey Toobin, The Run of His Life: The People v. O.J. Simpson, this adaptation crime drama brings us into the folds what happened to O.J. Simpson after he was arrested and how it affected those closest to him. It goes into detail about the main players on his legal team and how they worked to bring a not guilty verdict to their client. The majority of it involves the courtroom showdown between the defense and the prosecution. There’s no doubt this trial captured everyone’s attention: the jury selection, witness testimony, cross examination, evidence, and final verdict. There were many who believed he committed the murders and many who did not. After 25 years, the civil lawsuit filed and won in 1997 by the Brown and Goldman families against O.J. Simpson have yet to be paid in full. I consider these two families as suffering the most in this along with Nicole’s two children.
I rate American Crime Story: People v. O.J. Simpson Four Fingers at 90%.
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Quote from American Crime Story by Andrew Cunanan
“A man with nothing to give is a nothing man.”
Creators: Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski
Executive Producers: Larry Karaszewski, Scott Alexander, Brad Falchuk, Brad Simpson, Nina Jacobson, Ryan Murphy, Alexis Martin Woodall, Tom Rob Smith, D.V. DeVincentis, and Daniel Minahan
Directors: Ryan Murphy, Anthony Hemingway, Gwyneth Horder-Payton, Daniel Minahan, John Singleton, Matt Bomer, and Nelson Cragg
Writers: Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski, Jeffrey Toobin, Marueen Orth, Tom Rob Smith, D.V. DeVincentis, Joe Robert Cole, Maya Forbes, Wallace Wolodarsky, and Maggie Cohn
Major Cast: Darren Criss as Andrew Cunanan, Édgar Ramírez as Gianni Versace, Ricky Martin as Antonio D’Amico, Penélope Cruz as Donatella Versace, Annaleigh Ashford as Elizabeth Cote, Finn Wittrock as Jeffrey Trail, Cody Fern as David Madson, Judith Light as Marilyn Miglin, Michael Nouri as Norman Blachford, Giovanni Cirfiera as Santo Versace, Jon Jon Briones as Modesto Cunanan, Terry Sweeney as David Gallo, Mike Farrell as Lee Miglin, Jay R. Ferguson as FBI Agent Keith Evans, Will Chase as Detective Paul Scrimshaw, Dascha Polanco as Detective Lori Wieder, and Edouard Holdener as young Andrew Cunanan
TV Rating: TV-MA
Episode Number: 9
Running Time: 41-66 minutes
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American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace aired on FX in 2018, totaling 9 episodes regarding the murders of Jeffrey Trail, David Madson, Lee Miglin, William Reese, and Gianni Versace in 1997. There was no trial as Cunanan did the criminal justice system and the surviving families of those he killed a favor with a self-inflicted gunshot after an eight day manhunt. This is based from the book by Maureen Orth, Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in U.S. History. This adaptation crime drama brings us back and forth in time in Cunanan’s life, highlighting the events and experiences that influenced him as an adult. There was a window into the lives of those he killed although some strayed from what actually happened. It goes less into detail about the FBI manhunt for him, but provides enough coverage to know there wasn’t enough planning among the various police departments. I also preferred this season because friends/family involved were overall more interesting. I found Antonio D’Amico and Marilyn Miglin much more interesting than any member of the Kardashian family. The majority of it centers on the downward spiral of Cunanan where anyone in his path either became a friend, enemy, or both. There isn’t any doubt he was affected by his upbringing: attention seeking behaviors, schemes to appear likeable, and the need to control others. It seems the only people who believed he was set up were his parents after his terror ended. His mother, Mary Ann, died in 2012 while his father remarried and probably still believes his son wasn’t gay or guilty of the murders. Andrew Cunanan’s ashes are in a mausoleum located in San Diego, California.
I rate American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace Four Fingers and One Thumb at 95%.
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