Season one premiered March 18, 2013, the award winning show Bates Motel is back for its fifth and final season.
Bates Motel is a show that falls under the genres of mystery, drama, and psychological horror. Directed by Tucker Gates, Kerry Ehrin, and Johan Renck, this hit TV series on A&E Network is a contemporary prequel to Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 film Psycho – based off of Robert Bloch’s novel of the same name. The series begins with the mysterious death of Norma’s husband, after which Norma Bates purchases a motel so she and her son, Norman Bates, can start a new life. Succeeding seasons follow Norman as his mental illness becomes dangerous, and Norma struggling to protect her son from himself.
The show has been nominated and had won various different awards. The People’s Choice Awards has nominated the show under the category “Favorite Cable TV Drama” for the past two years. According to IMBd, it also won under that category in 2017. In 2016, the show was nominated the “Most Binge-worthy Show” for the Critics’ Choice Television Awards along with the “Best Action/Thriller Television Series” for the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films in 2014.
Bates Motel’s fame has a lot to do with its leading actors and actresses as well. Primarily focusing on Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore – who play the two main characters, Norma and Norman Bates. The actors and actresses have also won various awards and have been nominees multiple times. Farmiga is most commonly being nominated for awards pertaining to “Best Leading Actress,” in which she won during the Gracie Allen Awards during 2016 under the category for “Outstanding Female Actor in a Leading Role in a Drama.” She also won “Best Actress in a Television Series” in 2014 during the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films. Highmore is also often a nominee within award shows as well. The People’s Choice Awards nominated Highmore under the category of “Favorite TV Anti-Hero” in 2014. The Fangoria Chainsaw Awards also had Highmore as a nominee for “Best TV Actor” in 2017.
The best part of watching Bates Motel is the element of dramatic irony. The audience watching knows the future of what’s to come from Norman and Norma, they already know the outcome. Yet the characters of the show are unaware of what’s in store for them. However, the audience still experiences the build ups and plot twists leading up to the moment where Bates Motel and Psycho intertwine.
Bates Motel has a recommended age rating, despite the shows high ratings – such as a 91% from Rotten Tomatoes. Based off of Hitchcock’s film Psycho, the show is a dark twist on the horror classic. According to Common Sense Media, the suggested age for Bates Motel is 16 and older due to violent content. The show itself is not entirely violent, but brief moments that do contain it may be intense for young viewers.
