The Shards, now streaming on Disney+, is a watchable and dreamily shallow adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's novel, but it lacks the suspense that would elevate it to excellence, according to Martin Robinson's review.
A Challenging Adaptation
Ellis's novels have historically been difficult to adapt due to their satirical, graphic, and tonally tricky nature. Only the film version of American Psycho has had lasting impact, and it required a lightly comedic approach that missed the chilling depiction of societal decay. Now, the world seems dark and decadent enough for Ellis to feel relevant again, with a new Psycho film in the works directed by Luca Guadagnino.
The Shards Plot and Cast
The Shards is a meta teen horror about Ellis writing his first novel, Less Than Zero, in 1981, while he and his wealthy Hollywood friends are threatened by a serial killer called The Trawler, who grafts pets onto his victims' bodies. Created by Ryan Murphy and co-written with Ellis, the series features attractive production design and a cast of sexy and creepy actors. Igby Rigney captures the rising panic of the dissociated bisexual Bret, while Homer Gere (Richard's son) is frighteningly smooth as Robert Mallory, whose arrival at school coincides with student disappearances.
Style Over Substance
The series blends Euphoria's teen sex and drugs milieu (though weirdly chaste), Once Upon a Time in Hollywood's Manson references, and a bland magazine eroticism. Murphy, known for style over content, is perfectly suited to this material, delivering a watchable, dreamily shallow series about similar kids. It occasionally delivers on horror, but suspense is notably absent, which is the real measure of excellence.
