True crime shows often get a bad wrap. They often tell the same story but with different settings and characters: the person gets killled, the body is found, an autopsy is conducted, the smoking gun is found, an assailant gets convicted, repeat with the next episode.
Perhaps this is why I detest shows like "Dateline," "20/20," and whatever re-run of "Forensic Files" is airing on Investigation Discovery. Most installments of these shows, in their barest essence, follow that same cycle.
Then comes this spontaneously nail-biting anthology series on Hulu, "The Act."
The show takes on different crime stories each season, just like FX's "American Crime Story," but it seems what sets this show apart from the FX series is that it focuses on the small-town crimes that we hear about on crime documentaries.
Season one follows the bizarre story of Gypsy Rose Blanchard (Joey King), a girl faking a multitude of disabilities against her will by her mother Dee Dee (Patricia Arquette) in order to scam countless charities. The charade lands them a new house in Missouri after being displaced by Katrina, where they meet the snarky neighbors Lacey (AnnaSophia Robb) and her mother Mel (Chloe Sevigny).
As teenage rebellion kicks in, Gypsy conspires to kill her mother with her boyfriend Nick Godejohn (Calum Worthy), who she meets online. After successfully killing her, the Bonnie and Clyde-like couple run away to Nick's Wisconsin home, where he and Gypsy are arrested after their alibi of putting a fake Facebook account falls through.
This is the show's plot in its very essence and has much more to it than that. What's so great about "The Act" is its acting. Joey King and Patricia Arquette's ability to portray two multifaceted characters in such a realistic fashion is brilliant. When you watch both of them, you see the pain and hedonism that both Gypsy and Dee Dee convey. It's this versatility in their characters' personalities that make "The Act"'s plot versatile as well.
Gypsy and Dee Dee's personalities are also what ultimately makes "The Act" so much greater than the traditional true crime program: it sparks the suspense, conversation, and debate over whether or not someone like Gypsy is innocent or not.
One could argue that Gypsy is guilty because she was an accomplice to Nick and was a part of the conspiracy to kill Dee Dee. But some argue that Gypsy was used by her mother to cope with her extreme case of Munchausen syndrome, to the point where it became hostile.
"The Act" is a lot to unpack, and that's why it's so addicting to watch. As the season comes to an end, we might have some answers or larger context to whether or not we should feel sympathetic to Gypsy.
Regardless of how you'll feel after watching, perhaps we can agree that "The Act" is what true crime shows should be.
All episodes of "The Act" are streaming on Hulu.
