A Tribute to Bates Motel
A Tribute to Bates Motel
Photo Credit: Bettina Strauss
After five years and fifty episodes, Bates Motel signed off earlier this week. I was initially drawn to the series because of its connection to Alfred Hitchcocks 1960 masterpiece Psycho and also because of Freddie Highmore, whose career I have followed since his turn as a grief stricken child in the 2004 film Finding Neverland. Highmore is one of those actors who kept appearing on my radar in films such as August Rush and The Art of Getting By. I was also familiar with Vera Farmiga and her work in my all-time favorite film, The Departed (2006), as well as Up in the Air (2009). Both Farmiga and Highmore consistently delivered award worthy work on Bates Motel and I hope they finally receive the recognition they deserve when the Emmys are handed out this year. Highmore was particularly effective during the final season and his performance elicited sympathy for Norman, which I did not think was possible considering the characters horrific actions.
Bates Motel started off strong with a memorable first season, which was followed by uneven second and third seasons. The performances kept me watching and invested in the characters when the series lost its consistency. That patience paid off in a big way in season four when Bates Motel hit its creative peak that extended through its final episodes. The last two episodes of season four are the best of the series and when I think about them I am still partially in disbelief, but in a good way. Season five was consistently good overall and changed up the events of Hitchcocks aforementioned horror effort. I did not expect the show to end that way that it did, but it made sense. I was also surprised by the two original cast members who managed to survive, as I never expected that to happen. Creators Kerry Ehrin and Carlton Cuse managed to take a classic film and create something very different and special of their own for fifty episodes over five seasons. Bates Motel will be remembered as a unique and well acted effort that became better with age, thanks, in large part, to Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore.
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