User Reviews

This origin story for "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"'s Nurse Ratched looks great, as Ratched puts on a vintage dress and wreaks subtle havoc in an asylum. But the first episode was such a mess that I have zero interest in watching more.

Sarah Paulson is terrific as the chilly Ratched, and scenes like her bizarre foreplay with a random guy are pretty cool. But there are serious issues with the story and premise.

First off, her elaborate plan requires that nothing go wrong. Repeatedly in the first episode she sets something up in a way that could fail dismally but it never does. She needs no plan B, because even the stupidest plan A goes off like clockwork. It's so easy for her that she even takes risky, unnecessary steps to get herself exactly where she wants.

And if you've read the book or scene the movie then you have to question why this weird story is tied to that character. Ratched was a controlling psychopath, but ultimately she represented the cruel, cold nature of authority, which will crush anything creative or rebellious not out of mean-spiritedness as much as just because of an intolerance for chaos.

But this Ratched is actually a chaos agent, and a very different kind of psychopath. She is not a character who would become the character in Cuckoo's Nest. And this makes the tie-in nonsensical. It seems like a shoddy attempt to increase its visibility with a tie to a famous movie, but it has no respect for the character that movie created. And it's unnecessary, because there is zero reason for this tie-in. It could have been made with a nurse of any name.

In summary, Paulson is good but the series is not that interesting or believable and untrue to its presumed inspiration. Not recommended.

The writers need to do a little bit more research about the era. Without spoiling too much, the writers add diversity, but it doesn't work well at times because the writers fail to go in depth about the racism and homophobia of the era. I personally don't mind adding black or other minorities to shows. I'm a black woman myself. But why include black people in unrealistic roles in a show set in the 1940s? It's not representation. It's a complete lie and undermines the plight of black people and other minorities during that era. I saw this in Ryan Murphy's Hollywood as well. Again, sugar coating racism and homophobia. To be LGBTQ and/or a person of color was DANGEROUS back then. The stakes aren't realistically high enough in this show. If you watch the show, some parts are pretty tone deaf to the racist policies that occurred in the 40s.

Despite this, the show is okay. It's not great. I've never seen AHS so I don't have that frame of reference. The acting is very good. If you have time to waste, watch it. It's not unbearable although. Although the historical accuracy is trash.

Ryan Murphy continues to expand his storytelling abilities and empire with his latest series. Murphy clearly loves a period piece and this is seen throughout all of the clothes, buildings and cars. Classic Murphians as I call them appear in the series, most notably Sarah Paulson and Finn Wittrock. There are other actors who appear such as Jon Jon Briones who was recently seen in AHS: Apocalypse. I loved that Murphy incorporated other actors he has not worked with: Vincent D'Onofrio, Sharon Stone, Corey Stoll, Judy Davis and Cynthia Nixon just to name a few.

The acting and style of the show is superb. Each scene is resplendent and an element I loved was that certain colors reflected the thoughts and feelings of Mildred Ratched in her individual scenes. For about six episodes, Murphy kept me entertained, but he failed to answer some key questions.

There is no indication that the Mildred Ratched portrayed in the show is even somewhat related to her counterpart in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. She does have acts of villainy and cruelty, but this seems to become undone by the conclusion of the first season. Ratched has friends, those who care about her and she feels fulfilled in her life at the end. There is no indication of how she becomes the person she is in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest despite her manipulative acts early in the series. Another key issue is the friendships she creates with others.

Murphy tends to do a strange theme where enemies become friends for no reason whatsoever. This has happened in AHS, The Politician and his recent miniseries Hollywood. As a viewer, I want to understand the thought process behind this, but it only ever confuses me. He seems to want everyone to get along and it muddles the story. My one last critique is of Amanda Plummer's character Louise.

Louise is the insanely annoying motel owner of where Ratched is staying, but her character seems to be in the show for no good reason. She does not add to the plot and Murphy seems to want to involve her character because of Amanda Plummer. It's almost as if he doesn't know what to do with her and her position in the story changed entirely within the finale. This was so confusing as a viewer and one of my main complaints of Murphy: he gives more attention to the actor rather than that of the story. He also does this with Sophie Okonedo, but her acting is incredible and she deserves recognition. Like Amanda Plummer, he gave preference to her acting abilities rather than the story.

Well, my critiques are done now. The acting is stellar, it was slightly melodramatic at times but I did not care. I loved every scene with Sarah Paulson and Finn Wittrock, they have amazing chemistry together. This was most likely because they have worked together on AHS. I do suggest the show, but as a viewer, it is important to realize its faults. I hope that you watch the show and even recognize other shortcomings or observations. Please watch the show, I found it to be very entertaining!

Settings are pretty with pop colors.

Acting is fine.

I've been waiting the whole season for tension to build up and explode in a great finame, but it stayed constant. So the ending was a little bit disappointing.

Ratched has certainly had the hype recently, hardly surprising when you think of Murphy's work, the big question, is it up to the hype?

The first thing that will strike you, the visuals, it is a fabulous looking show, bright, stylish, it has a very cinematic feel.

The acting is terrific, Sarah Paulson, Sharon Stone, and just wait til you see Sophie Okonedo, she is incredible.

It definitely has an AHS vibe, but it's more subtle, by expect some violence and gore, although the real horror comes from the medical practices that were indeed used for quite a few years.

You'll be kept guessing, you won't have a clue what comes next, it has the ability to surprise.

I really would recommend it, 8/10.

Maybe it gets better but it feels too much like a carbon copy of American horror story. Same actress obviously, but it's too much style over substance. Lovely set design but shallow characters

Perfect. That woman is one of the finest actors ever. She is so precise and delivers her dialog to perfection. Running her a close second in Ratched is the person who conceived and designed the sets and clothing. I got the distinct feeling that he/she designed and implemented every scene down to a gnat's eyelash. Cynthia Nixon was wonderful. And the color coordination of the clothing and scenery deserve a special shoutout. An all around great effort by Ryan Murphy and Netflix.

I had no expectations and I really enjoyed it. Great cast and amazing costumes. Twists and turns and keeps you guessing what will happen next. I look forward to a second season

I had high hopes for Ratched because of Sarah Paulsen and Ryan Murphy are involved In . but it turned out to be a huge desappointement . I have seen 5 eps so far and nothing compelling about this show . Great acting by Sarah as usual but poor script ruined everything .it seems like a cheap copy of American Horror Story . Save your time and watch AHS instead .

Ratched could've been great. It's a visual feast. Set design, wardrobe, makeup, cinematography - it's all top-notch. That's why I can't bring myself to give this series a lower rating.

Unfortunately Ratched is yet another example of an interesting screenplay getting butchered by Ryan Murphy's invariable melodramatic soap-opera style. It's like watching a parody of a real series. Add a laugh track and every scene will feel like a well-produced SNL skit. Ryan Murphy must be terrified of real emotions.

This series is arguably bizarre, but it grows on you. At first I didn't think I'd make it through the first episode, but it's oddities keeps your fingers off the remote. A good cast helps keep you guessing. Give it a shot, I thoroughly enjoyed the insanity.

I enjoyed most of the episodes. But for some reason, by the time I got to the last, I felt like it all built up to an unsatisfying ending. I've heard people say that the flame dies out by the end, and never really understood that phrase until now. The show built up quite nice, but the logic and emotion applied to the characters in the final 2 episodes not only felt rushed, but the dynamics at all between the siblings didn't feel organic. Felt more over the top and cheesy. I hope the next season grounds the show again like the first 6 episodes

I don't quite know what to make of this. The production value is high, the settings and costumes impressive, and the acting mostly good, albeit with a tendency to being over the top. The story, however, is a mess. It's overly melodramatic and at the same time uninteresting. The interspersed scenes of violence have an alienating effect and do not fit in with the rest of the plot. The soundtrack (apparently recycled film music) that dominates almost every scene drowns the whole thing in pompous symphony. I for my part am not interested at all in Miss Ratched's further ongoings.

I was really hyped about Ratched because i like to see who Ratched really is,and the Trailer does the job.but despite that i was not completely satisfied . the things that i liked about this series was the acting of Sarah Paulson she was really into her character,she did a great job.I also liked the soundtraks that they used,they put me right in the moment except for one time or two. the things that i did not like is that in every Episode i feel the atmosphere of AHS, not just because that some actors are the same in AHS but because of the way and form things have been written give you that feeling. but we can say that altogether for a first season it was good but there's some weaknesses that the creators of the show should take a look at.I want them to do a second BETTER season.

She is always magnificent no matter what she stars in, but this role takes the prize. She is absolutely a standout, even though all the acting is pretty much primo.

Sarah Paulson and Cynthia Nixon give great performances, but I'm getting really really really really really really really really really really really really bored with Murphy's style over substance filmmaking. Paulson deserves better.

Sarah Paulson has yet another great part! The scenes are so believable and the props are definitely in the era! Costumes should win an award, beautiful colors and style! Actin superb! Thank you Netflix for another great series!

1) No any connection with - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest 2) An overdose of frankly sadistic scenes to make up for the stupidity and meaninglessness of the plot.

3) Endless and annoying pushing of a lesbian topic, not related to the plot.

So many twist and turns not sure what to expect next brilliant cast and astounding performance from Sophie okonedo with spilt personality disorder

Dont know why all the bad reviews

The show was ok. I liked what the show was setting up initially (if not a little on the nose at times) but then thematically it kind of goes off the rails and characters start acting differently. I mean, when we first meet Ratched she is very cold and calculating but by the end she's not. One could say its character growth but it feels more like the writers werent sure to carry out a master plan for her, so they switched gears to make her more sympathetic. And it just doesnt feel like the Ratched you know from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I kept thinking/kind of hoping that her getting close to Gwendolyn (Cynthia Nixon) was just a ploy in her scheme, but no. There also is this subplot involving Dr Hanover (Jon Jon Briones) and Lenore (Sharon Stone) that I felt wasnt really important. I mean, it doesnt change the end result of the show in any way, and feels random in a show called "Ratched". Like why not focus more on her?

I didnt completely hate it though. I really liked certain imagery and themes present in the show. I think it was very well acted for the most part. The only one who stood out to me in a bad way was Sophie Okonedo. She plays a character with multiple personality disorder, and sometimes she goes a bit too ham. Plus, I feel her characterization (well cant totally blame her - theres the writers as well) really stigmatizes the community. It makes it out to be that her alters (or at least a couple of them) are very dangerous and harmful.

This series is amazing. Got up early today 9/18/20 and binged the entire season. Sarah is INCREDIBLE, as is the cast of characters and the writing. A must watch!!!

Never really gets that interesting... It's like American Horror Story without the horror. I don't see the point of connecting it to the One flew over the cuckoo's nest, other than marketing purposes. If the story was more interesting and with added horror, it would have been a good season 10 of AHS that isn't going to be released in 2020.