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That should tell the viewer all they need to know going in: Serial Mom is not a proto- Desperate Housewives. The ill-fated Juror #8 is portrayed by Patricia Hearst, whose name appears in the film’s opening credits. Throughout Beverly’s trial, she is constantly distracted by Juror #8, who consistently wears white shoes and it’s after Labor Day. The only character whose moral compass seems unflappable – however deranged – is Serial Mom herself.
Serial mom trial#
So what are we waiting for, fellow Christians? Let’s just do it!”), until one’s wife is on trial for murder. The death penalty is the obvious, righteous choice (“ Capital punishment is already the law in the state of Maryland. In the world of the film, the consumption of slasher movies and serial killer literature are signs of psychological disturbance, until the killer becomes a celebrity who resonates with other suburban housewives. What’s really at play in Serial Mom is the changeable nature of social mores and moral standards.
The Sutphin clan is evidently as supportive and loving as the Cleavers. They’re not framed as greedy opportunists, however.
Serial mom tv#
Her family has loyally rallied behind her as they peddle “Serial Mom” merch and negotiate a TV adaptation of her story starring Suzanne Somers. In a mere five months, Beverly has turned into a true-crime sensation and a folk legend. I was especially struck during my most recent viewing by the film’s third act, which centers on Beverly’s media circus of a murder trial. This go-round left me with a renewed appreciation for Waters’ satirical acuity – which, it turns out, extends far beyond the doldrums of suburban life. Serial Mom was a favorite of mine as a young teenager, and I can see why. I’ve heard the claim that Serial Mom is “criminally underrated.” I would add that, much like the film’s anti-heroine, this cult favorite (I’m not sure if it has quite ascended to the rank of “classic”) has also been criminally underestimated. And yet, she is not entirely the film’s antagonist. In Serial Mom’s Baltimore, Beverly is the disruption – she is the writhing, murderous bug. In contrast, the viewer is warned within the first three minutes of David Lynch’s Blue Velvet (1986) that there is something sinister afoot in the seemingly idyllic town of Lumberton the melodic opening sequence of dreamy suburban life is disrupted by a pan to the bugs writhing just beneath the surface of an impeccably watered lawn as its owner keels over in the throes of a stroke. Colorful characters notwithstanding, the suburban Baltimore of Serial Mom seems like a perfectly fine place to live. The film doesn’t care about, or truly condemn, any of this. Sure, there’s a town pervert who vandalizes public bathroom stalls, a neighborhood busy-body who stiffs vendors at the local flea market, and a button-up detective who privately consumes transgender porn. What sets Serial Mom apart is that the film is fundamentally disinterested in critiquing the dishonest nature of suburban niceties and the nuclear family. According to Hollywood, something is always rotten in the suburbs. Chaos, more murder, and a media frenzy ensues.įrom a contemporary perspective, Serial Mom does not explore uncharted waters. Soon enough, the local authorities, as well as her dentist husband, Eugene (Sam Waterston), and teenage children, Chip and Misty (Matthew Lillard and Ricki Lake), begin to connect the dots as more people associated with the Sutphin family turn up dead. She also torments the exasperated neighborhood divorcee, Dottie Hinkel (Mink Stole), with a barrage of “obscene” prank calls.
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When Beverly is not serving her family the “best meatloaf,” birdwatching, or corresponding with serial killers on death row, she is taking out anyone who violates her code of conduct. Serial Mom’s premise is simple: Beverly Sutphin (Kathleen Turner) is a picture-perfect housewife living in suburban Baltimore who moonlights as the town murderer. Since the last few decades of the 20 th century, innumerable films and TV shows have endeavored to explore and expose what lies beneath the fragile veneer of suburban paradise and the nuclear family. Serial Mom could easily be interpreted as a campy member of the cinematic “suburban exposé” family. Film, Go To GO TO: Serial Mom (1994) John Waters
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