Lana, Kit, And Grace Aren't The Only Ones Who Help Tell The Story

In the TV series American Horror Story: Asylum there is many plots, emotions and character development. But the way that the set and camera work can tell the story and pull the emotions even further. The series is set in Briarcliff Mental Institution in Massachusetts in 1964. A scandal breaks out when a alleged serial killer is admitted into the institution. His name is Kit, but his serial killer name is Bloody Face. There he meets Grace who was accused of murdering her family. Then the nun who runs the institution admits a nosy reporter named Lana as revenge. Lana had snuck in for a story and was then hit in the head and knocked out. To keep her there, the head nun, Judy blackmailed Lana’s partner into signing release forms. Dr. Threadson, the therapist for Kit, then reveals he is actually Bloody Face.

            In the episode “Spilt Milk” Lana finally escapes from Briarcliff with another nuns help. She is walking down the stairs and she makes eye contact with Kit. Kit recognizes her and is about to blow her cover but then he helps her by distracting Dr. Threadson who is also on the stairwell. The camera switches between Lana and Kit. When it did that, it showed the emotions in each of their eyes. When I saw Lana, I could see the situation playing out in her head, by the way she looked into the camera. By the way the camera was following her down the stairs as a close up, I felt like Kit, and when it was on Kit, it made me feel like Lana. The way the camera moved and filmed the scene really pushed the story further and evoked more emotions.

            In the same episode, Grace and Kit come home to the house that Kit and his old wife Alma used to live in before she disappeared. The house is in ruins. I felt like the set really was a symbol.  I felt as if it symbolized Kit and Grace’s life in the asylum, corrupted, dirty, and broken.  The door is locked but the inside is ruined and destroyed. I also felt like this is a symbol for Grace’s emotional wall. She lied to Kit about murdering her family and said her stepfather did it. She said that she didn’t want Kit to judge her. She wanted Kit to just know she was damaged but not how much. Her inner demons wear locked away from Kit and she couldn’t share them. So those are some ways that the set helped tell the story even better.

            In American Horror Story: Asylum the camera work and setting really help the story deliver it’s message and evoke more emotions. I really enjoyed the series and the plot was well planned out. The characters were complex and the emotions wear raw. I can’t wait to watch the third season!