The 2nd installment of the American Crime Story tells about the assassination of Gianni Versace by the serial killer Andrew Cunanan; it is based on the Maureen Orth’s book “Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in U. S. History.” It has pretty much nothing to do with the 1st season of the show, up to the fact that it was written and produces by different people, not to mention the cast. The story focuses mostly on Cunanan, to whom around 65% of the screen time is dedicated; Versace takes up the remaining 35%. The structure of the story is non-linear, presenting various pieces of it scattered across times and geographies in a generally backward movement, but coming back to the present (i.e. the day of Versace’s murder and weeks immediately following it) all the time. In relation to Versace the story is concentrated on his death and all things related to it, even remotely, which means tracing his life back up to the childhood, but also – leaving out major parts from his life, like the process of building the company, the discovery of his sexuality, etc. When it comes to Cunanan, however, the writer puts under scrutiny his whole life investigating all the turning points there were. As it follows, homosexuality, the perception of it in the 1980s and 1990s, is one of the core subjects of the story.

Just like the first season of the show, this one is blessed with a power-cast, albeit consisting of different personalities. All of them, however, are absolutely amazing, starting with the leads – Édgar Ramírez as Versace and Darren Criss as Cunanan – and proceeding to the rest of them, including Ricky Martin as Versace’s life partner Antonio, Penelope Cruz as Donatella, Finn Wittrock as Jeff, Cody Fern as David, and so on.

The story is a mix of large pieces of the story arranged in a backwards fashion, which structure allows to really dig the tragedy of Cunanan’s life, as well as the tragedy of Versace’s death. While the story of the couturiere is attractive because it is one of a good person who built himself up, a creator whose best years were taken from him, the Cunanan story appeals to the part in the viewers’ souls that finds thrill and excitement in the evolution of darkness. The picture of Andrew’s development seems to be psychologically correct, even though the complexity of it makes it hard to figure out what exactly damaged him bad enough for him to eventually go frantic. The writer has a theory, of course, but instead of forcing it onto the audience he implies it, which works much better (and also allows him to leave some parts ambiguous).

The execution is top-notch, absolutely flawless, same as with season 1. The show is a total delight all in all – clear, powerful, full of action and deeply rooted drama. Still very much recommended.

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