Based on Hulu's promotional materials, Season 1 of The Act is based on real events. At the end credits, the series warns us that some details may be not entirely accurate, but this is a true crime story, and reading the facts of the real case, it's horrifying. Episode 1, "La Maison du Bon Reve", offers this warm-looking suburban American neighborhood where Gypsy Blanchard (Joey King) and her mother Dee Dee Blanchard (Patricia Arquette) live. The opening scene is set in 2015, where the Blanchard household is empty, and the police have been alerted that the pair have been missing. The rest of Episode 1 brings us back to when the pair moved into the neighborhood. Their house was provided by a scheme called Habitat, which helps construct housing based on special needs. Due to Gypsy's range of medical issues, the media have taken an interest in her, and news outlets are following them due to the fact they've been in trouble in previous neighborhoods. As a journalist interviews Gypsy and DeDee, it's noticeable that the mother wants to answer all the questions, prompting the interviewer to request that Gypsy has the opportunity to have a voice. It's clear that Season 1 of The Act is a story of control. The mother is mentally unstable, and it seems the story is framing it in a way where she genuinely believes her daughter has all these medical issues. Maybe over time, she has convinced herself the lies are truths. As Episode 1, "La Maison du Bon Reve" ends, it goes back to 2015; the police have a warrant and enter their home, and Dee Dee is deceased on her bed.
Review of La Maison du Bon Reve
