"Feud : Bette & Joan (2017)" : A TV Review

"Feud : Bette & Joan" is the first season of a 2017 miniseries and stars Susan Sarandon, Jessica Lange, Alfred Molina, Jackie Hoffman, Stanley Tucci, and Judy Davis

If you're feeling shitty about watching shitty reality TV, watch "Feud : Bette & Joan". All the salacious and childish drama of reality tv, but for some reason, if you watch Feud, you're considered an intellectual. The problem with Feud, is that it's hypocritical in it's purpose. Ryan Murphy created the show because he wanted to show how the studios were at fault for Bette Davis & Joan Crawford's Feud, but instead of showing how much Joan & Bette's relationship wasn't very turbulent and that the tabloids and studio press faked drama for the public, he presents 2 women who act like cartoon characters. Throughout the series, Bette & Joan are shown to be nothing but vain children. They have a fight over the Oscars in a manner that fans of theirs have over 50 years later, and it's hilarious to see how scripted it feels. Some of you might say it's meant to be comedic, but that's the problem. With comedic moments like that one, over the top gestures, some very odd auditory performances, and pretty much all of Mamacita's character, the finale episode of the series, which I would normally consider a positive, doesn't feel earned. It's like if after the end of The Producers, you tried to squeeze in the ending of The Mist. In an attempt to be balanced, however, I will say that the performances of Susan Sarandon, Jessica Lange, Alfred Molina, Jackie Hoffman, and Stanley Tucci all do save this show from being Mommie Dearest (1981) levels of trash, and back up to reality TV levels of trash. And to bring it back to Reality TV, that's basically what this show is, one where you put it on expecting to be entertained, but not expecting high quality content.

2.5/5 Stars.