It’s the scary season and I kicked it off with the Netflix series Midnight Mass. We were discussing what to watch in a Whatsgroup and SpekkTrumn suggested Midnight Mass. I looked it up real quick, and decided, okaaaaaay, colour me intrigued.
Midnight Mass
Midnight Mass is a supernatural miniseries created and directed by Mike Flanagan. The series premiered on Netflix on the 24th of September 2021. The show has 7 episodes approximately an hour each, which gives it about seven hours of viewing time, perfect for a weekend binge.
The show follows the mysterious events that start transpiring in the backwater island town of Crockett when a charismatic young priest arrives into town and onto the pulpit of St Patrick’s church….
"This little island. So sleepy, it could be dead."
*Interesting Note* While Crockett Island is entirely fictional and so is the story; Midnight Mass was filmed in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada and the real name of the location is Garry Point Park.
The Good
Two words: Mike Flanagan.
Mike Flanagan is the genius behind several horror productions and has received praise from Stephen King. Mike Flanagan directed Dr Sleep the movie adaptation of Stephen King’s 2013 novel Dr Sleep, a sequel to the 1977 classic The Shining.
The show is true to Flanagan’s trademark M.O. where a character-driven plot lets you get underneath the character’s skin …while they slowly get into your head. You will never be ready for what comes next.
Midnight Mass has some profound dialogue, questions and challenges societal beliefs, faith and purpose; leaving you to ponder long after the last credit has rolled on the screen.
Sometimes it’s okay to just look at the world and say, “Why? Why? Why? I don’t understand.”
The Bad
The plot follows a very slow boiled recipe where nothing immediately jumps out of the pot and startles you. (Flanagan doesn’t do jump scares) The first couple of episodes seem to drag oooooon, especially after watching the trailer which gives a rather misleading impression of quick action. I almost stopped watching….
My recommendation: stick with it till episode 3 before making any hasty decisions.
The Ugly
The characters are prone to insightful monologues which are intriguing but geez this is supposed to be a horror series, not a soliloquy soirée. Some of the characterisations can come across as preachy-high-horsed rhetoric.
Those of a sensitive religious disposition might find aspects of this series offensive to their sensibilities. The series raises questions that can test one’s faith.
"We tend to dislike mysteries. We feel uncomfortable not knowing... The more that we know, the less we bend, the more brittle we become, the easier to break."
Final thoughts
Midnight Mass is an epic ride whose most interesting aspect I can’t write about because there be spoilers. I liked how they made this series to be an atypical horror trope and not once do they mention one singular word that will immediately jump at you a couple of episodes into watching this series.
Have you watched this? Would you watch such?
Becoming The Muse 
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