eventually introduce a few chaotic elements to slightly complicate Halston’s smooth ride to the top. (“Get it, Sassy!” is an absolute gem.) Still, those delightful dalliances never consume the character, as McGregor finds pathos in random, unearned moments of sorrow (Halston’s breakdowns can only really be justified by all the drugs he’s on) and in the end, when he’s given proper room to find peace. The Scottish actor has so much fun with Halston’s catty personality and unflinching confidence, he even lets himself cross over into camp. Rough life, right? “Halston” could be undone by its careless and carefree disposition, save for McGregor’s loose and lovely turn in the lead role. By the end of the first episode (which, like all five entries, hovers around a tight 45), he’s wooed the city’s top influencer, and he’s well on his way to becoming the mononymous force in fashion who conquered the Battle of Versailles and brought international respect to American designers.Īll of that gets covered in Episode 2, as Halston enjoys the success of his ultrasuede innovation and gets bullied into participating in the 1973 fashion show. In 20, he’s got a team assembled and a storefront on Madison Avenue. After 10 minutes, he’s got his first line on the runway. To hear it from “Halston,” one would expect to gaze out at the Kentucky Derby and see people squinting hopelessly into the sun, or baseball uniforms would end at the players’ pinstriped shoulders - such is the catastrophic fallout for this singular designer.Įxcept, there’s no real fallout. He’s well on his way, but then… people stop wearing hats. Before two minutes have passed, the now-grown stylist has already designed a pillbox hat for Jackie Kennedy and entered into an enviable arrangement with Manhattan’s Bergdorf Goodman department store. His tiny little fingers stitch together a feathery fedora that does the trick, and thus begins the journey from Farmboy Roy to Halston. As a young boy in Des Moines, Iowa, little Roy Halston Frowick hears his parents fighting and decides to cheer his mother up with a new hat. “Halston” starts right where you’d expect: childhood. 'The Lord of the Rings': Everything You Need to Know About Amazon's Big Money Adaptation 'The Sandman' Trailer: Neil Gaiman's Beloved Graphic Novels (Finally) Come to Lifeġ9 Best Erotic Thrillers, from Adrian Lyne to Brian De Palma 'Reservation Dogs' Season 2 Review: Less Funny? Yes, but Also More Assured and Complex But Murphy and fellow writer-producer Ian Brennan imbue even the most mirthful scenes with lingering gloom, honing in on Halston’s loss of identity fairly early on, and that choice - in its own weird, inadequate way - helps make up for the show never giving him much of one to begin with.
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With friends like Liza Minnelli (Krysta Rodriguez) and Joel Schumacher (Rory Culkin), parties in Versailles and Studio 54, and more glamorous couture than on any Emmy red carpet, it would have been easy for the limited series to fully embrace its lead’s envious lifestyle and relish in the good times before they abruptly turned bad.
Still, this isn’t “Ratched.” There’s a bit of thought behind “Halston,” and even better, there’s a wistful regret driving its incrementally more interesting second half. Instead, it just coasts along on Ewan McGregor’s considerable charms, lush craft work now-standard to the mega-producer’s projects, and a broad biopic template so well-worn it slides on too easily, like an old coat that you had thought was new. Told in less time than the last “Lord of the Rings,” Ryan Murphy’s latest prestige limited series is light on conflict, high on privilege, and barely reaches into its titular lead’s background to unearth meaningful drama. For a series where Vera Farmiga creates perfume by wrapping a used jock strap around her face and Ewan McGregor screams “Get it, Sassy!” at his starry-eyed assistant when the office runs low on cocaine, the most surprising aspect of “ Halston” is how ordinary it feels.
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