To be honest all the usual haunted house tropes are sprinkled throughout Shining Vale -but they are done with such fun that you’re happy to see them coming.
Shining Vale is the name of the small town that novelist Patricia (Courteney Cox) and husband Terry (Greg Kinnear) move to with their two teens Gaynor (Gus Birney) and Jake (Dylan Gage).
Their newly purchased rambling period home is finally offloaded by a local real estate agent (Sherilyn Fenn) who quips, “This old lady has lots of stories to tell.”
If it’s full of character and dark corners, it’s also where Pat hopes to get over her writer’s block. After one racy best-seller (described by locals as “lady porn”), her publisher demands a new first chapter within the month.
It’s also the home where Pat & Terry hope to rekindle their marriage after Pat strayed with a handyman.
But not long after moving into the house things go bump in the night for Pat and she sees visions which raise questions about her grip on reality. However, she may also have found herself a ghostwriter… geddit?
Teen daughter Gaynor is drawn to a cute Christian kid from the local Chastity Club, whose mother spruiks ominous warnings about the house, while Jake’s new VR visors lead him down a garden path to clues from the past.
The series by Jeff Astrof and Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe) toys with the idea of depression and / or possession, suggesting the symptoms are often very similar. It charts a very adult approach to its story, with almost as many F-bombs as an episode of Deadwood (ok, maybe that’s an exaggeration), and even jokes around Jake potentially being groomed online. Yikes.
I also acknowledge homages to The Shining, not just in name, but in touches of madness and title cards, “MONDAY” “WEDNESDAY” etc.
Courteney Cox crackles in this role, perfectly balanced by Kinnear -the best moments are when they are on screen together. But special mention also goes to Mira Sorvino as the 1950’s spirit of the house, a most theatrical role.
While many dramas are demanding and time consuming, Shining Vale offers a light touch in 30 minute doses.
Spooky fun.
Shining Vale premieres with a double episode Monday on Binge, Wednesday March 9 at 8.30pm on FOX Showcase.